Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Stock Position Raised by Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 1,009.4% in Q1, purchasing an additional 535 shares and bringing its total holdings to 588 shares valued at $301,000.
• Analyst ratings reflect a mix of optimism, with one "Strong Buy," eight "Buy," and eight "Hold" ratings, leading to an average price target of $588.85 for Northrop Grumman shares.
• Northrop Grumman announced a quarterly dividend of $2.31, representing an annualized yield of 1.6%, with a payout ratio of 34.06%.

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 1,009.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 588 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Hollencrest Capital Management increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 790.0% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 89 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,552 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,819,575.04. This trade represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 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 value of $1,770,195.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 1,827 shares of the company's stock, valued at $924,041.79. This trade represents a 65.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,536 shares of company stock valued at $8,306,857. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NOC. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $480.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $542.00 target price (down previously from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $588.85.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $2.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $589.97. 528,569 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 723,325. 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 fifty-two week low of $426.24 and a fifty-two week high of $600.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $550.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $508.52. The firm has a market cap of $84.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.75, a PEG ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.84 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $10.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.15 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 25.52%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.36 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.000-25.400 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.06%.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.