Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Moran Wealth Management LLC

Moran Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 30.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 36,724 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 16,340 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $18,803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 55,522.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,520,158 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $778,336,000 after acquiring an additional 1,517,425 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,866,133,000 after buying an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $952,962,000 after purchasing an additional 450,858 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 337.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 482,112 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $226,250,000 after buying an additional 371,814 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $171,580,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price target on Northrop Grumman and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $553.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $368,706.33. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,819,575.04. This trade represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total transaction of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $156,310. This trade represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock valued at $8,322,279. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded down $15.77 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $483.90. The company had a trading volume of 928,929 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,065,922. The company has a market capitalization of $69.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.14. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $422.69 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The company's fifty day moving average is $488.63 and its 200-day moving average is $483.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.46% and a net margin of 9.19%. The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a $2.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.46%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. The company's Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic ISR systems and vertical take-off and landing tactical ISR systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems.