Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC Raises Position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 90.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,464 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 1,168 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,262,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 55,522.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,520,158 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $778,336,000 after purchasing an additional 1,517,425 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% during 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 period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $952,962,000 after acquiring an additional 450,858 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 337.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 482,112 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $226,250,000 after acquiring an additional 371,814 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $171,580,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC traded up $3.76 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $507.96. The stock had a trading volume of 653,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 880,872. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.11 billion, a PE ratio of 20.05, a PEG ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 0.15. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12 month low of $422.69 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company's 50-day moving average is $486.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $484.36.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. Research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. This is a positive change 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 yield of 1.82%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total transaction of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,310. This represents a 75.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of the firm'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 $3,793,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 201,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $101,964,243.54. This represents a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,536 shares of company stock valued at $8,306,430. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price target on Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $552.54.

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.