Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Stake Trimmed by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS decreased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 78.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 455 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,639 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $5,949,556,000 after acquiring an additional 56,807 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after acquiring an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,954,452,000 after acquiring an additional 23,808 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 21,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 109,308 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded down $5.00 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $518.83. 873,898 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,017,516. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $426.24 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $491.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $486.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $74.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.47, a PEG ratio of 6.17 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 36.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,310. The trade was a 75.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $1,770,195.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $924,041.79. This trade represents a 65.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,569 shares of company stock valued at $8,323,150 in the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on NOC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine equities research 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $550.00.

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.