Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Shares Acquired by Swiss National Bank

Key Points

• Swiss National Bank increased its Northrop Grumman stake by 6.8% in the first quarter, ending with 397,885 shares worth about $271.5 million.
• Wall Street sentiment is mixed but generally positive: Northrop Grumman has a Moderate Buy consensus, though several firms recently cut price targets while keeping ratings around hold/buy.
• The company continues to show solid fundamentals, with its last quarterly results beating earnings and revenue estimates and management raising the quarterly dividend to $2.47 per share.

Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 6.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 397,885 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 25,240 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.28% of Northrop Grumman worth $271,453,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Karpus Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 380.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NOC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $620.00 to $580.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Northrop Grumman from $603.00 to $533.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $680.00 to $580.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $628.00 to $587.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $676.29.

Key Headlines Impacting Northrop Grumman

Here are the key news stories impacting Northrop Grumman this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Defense stocks are benefiting from a broader sector rally as investors respond to expectations for stronger U.S. military spending, including a proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget backdrop. Northrop Grumman rises as defense-spending tailwinds and program momentum lift sentiment
• Positive Sentiment: Investor attention is building ahead of Northrop Grumman’s July 21 Q2 results, with a strong backlog and government contract momentum expected to support the quarter. Northrop Grumman to Post Q2 Earnings: Here's What to Expect
• Positive Sentiment: Recent program news, including work tied to Sentinel infrastructure, is reinforcing the long-term growth story for strategic deterrence and aerospace missions. Northrop Grumman Planning To Add Hundreds Of Jobs For Sentinel
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary remains mixed-to-positive, with recent coverage focused on key earnings metrics and margin sensitivity, especially around the Sentinel program.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider trading data shows no open-market insider buying in the last six months, while several executives have sold shares, which may temper some enthusiasm.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $523.19 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $74.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of -0.10. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $538.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $623.81. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $493.84 and a 12-month high of $774.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.06 by $0.08. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.72% and a net margin of 10.80%.The business had revenue of $9.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.75 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.06 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 27.95 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $2.47 per share. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $9.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.92%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation NYSE: NOC is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company's portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company's work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.

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