Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Shares Purchased by Golden State Wealth Management LLC

Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 206.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,771 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,866 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,421,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 18.8% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 795,839 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $407,477,000 after purchasing an additional 125,693 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,281 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $656,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Valicenti Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Valicenti Advisory Services Inc. now owns 10,086 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $5,164,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,418 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,286,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 16.6% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,185 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

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 transaction of $1,770,195.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 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 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 transaction of $3,793,275.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 201,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at $101,964,243.54. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,322,279. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NOC shares. 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 note on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Argus upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $553.43.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $487.45 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $486.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $483.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The company has a market capitalization of $70.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.24, a P/E/G ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.14. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52-week low of $422.69 and a 52-week high of $555.57.

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

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 an increase from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.46%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.