Kentucky Retirement Systems Buys 9,814 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Kentucky Retirement Systems raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 115.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,328 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 9,814 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems' holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $12,504,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Karpus Management Inc. bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 380.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $535.52 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $76.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.01, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of -0.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $535.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $621.16. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $479.02 and a 52 week high of $774.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.86. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 10.48%.The company had revenue of $10.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $8.15 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.600-29.100 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $2.47 per share. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. This represents a $9.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Monday, June 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $745.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $615.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $815.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $659.00.

Northrop Grumman Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation NYSE: NOC is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company's portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company's work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.

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