Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd Decreases Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Key Points

• Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd cut its Northrop Grumman stake by 69.8% in the second quarter, leaving it with 2,160 shares valued at approximately $1.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 83.4% of NOC.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $661.30. Northrop Grumman exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, reporting $7.68 EPS and $10.88 billion in revenue.
• NOC shares opened at $549.46, well below their 52-week high of $774.00. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $2.47, equivalent to an annualized $9.88 payout and a 1.8% yield.

Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd decreased its stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 69.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,160 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 5,002 shares during the period. Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,100,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,001,616,000. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 39.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,434,041 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,958,151,000 after purchasing an additional 970,029 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at approximately $376,135,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 56,920.9% in the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 421,955 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $240,603,000 after purchasing an additional 421,215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter valued at $194,058,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Northrop Grumman from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $785.00 to $655.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $615.00 price objective on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $661.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $547.53, for a total transaction of $52,015.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,405,299.29. The trade was a 2.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NOC stock opened at $549.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of -0.11. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $541.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $608.43. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $479.02 and a 1 year high of $774.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $10.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.80 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 10.48%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.15 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.600-29.100 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a $2.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $9.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.39%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation NYSE: NOC is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company's portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company's work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NOC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source