New York State Teachers Retirement System Cuts Position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 102,976 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 2,944 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.07% of Northrop Grumman worth $52,725,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 56,807 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in 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 during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,954,452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,417,850,000 after acquiring an additional 21,903 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,807,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,317,402,000 after buying an additional 109,308 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $1,770,195.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,827 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $924,041.79. This trade represents a 65.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,819,575.04. The trade was a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,322,279 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC stock traded up $3.54 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $503.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 651,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 877,803. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $484.26 and a 200-day moving average of $483.58. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $422.69 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $72.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.87, a P/E/G ratio of 5.39 and a beta of 0.14.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.19% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $552.54.

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.