Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC reduced its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 55,862 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 2,166 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $28,602,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 176.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,394,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $472,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $201,000. Amundi boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 151.8% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 63,089 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $29,160,000 after buying an additional 38,034 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 18,108 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $8,498,000 after buying an additional 1,114 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC traded up $6.41 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $514.35. The stock had a trading volume of 623,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 879,058. The stock has a market cap of $74.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.30, a P/E/G ratio of 5.52 and a beta of 0.15. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $424.66 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $488.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $484.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.46% and a net margin of 9.19%. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.07 billion. On average, equities analysts expect 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. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was 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 dividend yield of 1.80%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is currently 36.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $368,706.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 7,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,819,575.04. The trade was a 8.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $924,041.79. The trade was a 65.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock valued at $8,323,150 over the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $542.00 target price (down previously from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $550.00.

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.