Patton Fund Management Inc. Makes New $232,000 Investment in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Key Points

• Patton Fund Management Inc. has made a new investment of $232,000 in Northrop Grumman Corporation, acquiring 465 shares of the aerospace company's stock.
• Northrop Grumman reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $7.11, surpassing analysts' expectations, and has projected FY 2025 guidance of 25.000-25.400 EPS.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $2.31 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.6% for investors.

Patton Fund Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 465 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,266,301 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $6,792,479,000 after buying an additional 588,520 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 23.4% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,139,333 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,631,390,000 after buying an additional 974,633 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,241,144 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,147,489,000 after buying an additional 210,500 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,944,186 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $995,443,000 after buying an additional 210,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 12.0% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,115,625 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $571,211,000 after buying an additional 119,693 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.5%

NOC opened at $594.50 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $426.24 and a fifty-two week high of $600.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $85.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.91, a P/E/G ratio of 5.69 and a beta of 0.13. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $580.34 and a 200-day moving average of $525.58.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.36 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.000-25.400 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were given a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is currently 34.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a $542.00 price target (down previously from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Susquehanna increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $588.85.

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.

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