VELA Investment Management LLC Acquires 1,512 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

VELA Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 23.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,915 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,512 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises approximately 1.3% of VELA Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. VELA Investment Management LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $4,053,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 291.7% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $552.54.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded up $4.50 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $503.40. 381,831 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 881,784. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $486.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $484.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.87, a price-to-earnings-growth 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.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.46% and a net margin of 9.19%. Equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend yield of 1.84%. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.46%.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 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 $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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the firm'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 completion of the sale, the vice president owned 319 shares of the company's stock, valued at $156,310. The trade was a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,322,279. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

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.