Shell Asset Management Co. Trims Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Shell Asset Management Co. lowered its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 30.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,306 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,473 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,551,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $952,962,000 after buying an additional 450,858 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 337.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 482,112 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $226,250,000 after buying an additional 371,814 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $171,580,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,733,680 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $813,599,000 after acquiring an additional 343,018 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,045,249 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NOC. Argus raised Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NOC traded down $1.89 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $470.99. The company had a trading volume of 184,676 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,103,217. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $495.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $484.85. The firm has a market cap of $67.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). The company 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 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

About Northrop Grumman

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.