NBC Securities Inc. Invests $324,000 in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 632 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $324,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $5,949,556,000 after acquiring an additional 56,807 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,866,133,000 after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,954,452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,417,850,000 after buying an additional 21,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,807,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,317,402,000 after buying an additional 109,308 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $545.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $156,310. The trade was a 75.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,090 shares of company stock valued at $533,853. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NOC stock traded down $2.25 on Tuesday, reaching $489.11. The company had a trading volume of 535,837 shares, compared to its average volume of 888,952. The stock has a market cap of $70.40 billion, a PE ratio of 17.26, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a 50-day moving average of $490.11 and a 200-day moving average of $482.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. 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 1.89%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is currently 36.46%.

Northrop Grumman Profile

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.