MUFG Securities EMEA plc Reduces Position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Key Points

• MUFG Securities EMEA plc reduced its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.0% during the first quarter, now owning 18,999 shares valued at approximately $9.7 million.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded their price targets for Northrop Grumman, with new estimates ranging from $565.00 to $650.00, indicating strong market confidence in the stock.
• Northrop Grumman recently increased its quarterly dividend from $2.06 to $2.31, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

MUFG Securities EMEA plc decreased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 5.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,999 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $9,728,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,266,301 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $6,792,479,000 after purchasing an additional 588,520 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 28.5% in 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 in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $778,336,000 after purchasing an additional 1,517,425 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,251,050 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $587,105,000 after purchasing an additional 118,211 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC stock traded down $0.43 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $580.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 342,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,001,999. The company has a 50 day moving average of $526.45 and a 200 day moving average of $498.99. The stock has a market cap of $83.10 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $426.24 and a 12-month high of $594.68.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.84 by $0.27. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 25.52%. The firm had revenue of $10.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.36 EPS. The business's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on NOC. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $625.00 price target (up previously from $550.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $586.79.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $1,770,195.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $924,041.79. This represents a 65.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $368,706.33. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,819,575.04. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,536 shares of company stock valued at $8,306,857. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.