PFG Advisors Has $2.73 Million Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

PFG Advisors increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 32.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,330 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,312 shares during the quarter. PFG Advisors' holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,729,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 790.0% during the 1st 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 period. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on NOC. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on 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, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $576.67.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $1.04 on Friday, reaching $569.52. 635,710 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 771,872. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $576.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $501.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $490.74. The stock has a market cap of $81.54 billion, a PE ratio of 20.99, a PEG ratio of 6.19 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.84 by $0.27. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.52% and a net margin of 9.74%. The business had revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.36 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 34.06%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 201,602 shares in the company, valued at $101,964,243.54. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the vice president owned 319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $156,310. The trade was a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,323,150. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.