Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Sells 592 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. trimmed its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 9.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,667 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 592 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.'s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,902,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stratos Investment Management LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.8% during the first quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 3,100 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,588,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 35.6% during the first quarter. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. now owns 2,451 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,255,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the period. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth approximately $202,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 54.6% during the first quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,308 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $670,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.3% during the first quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 72,157 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $36,945,000 after purchasing an additional 3,007 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC traded up $6.41 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $514.35. The company had a trading volume of 623,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 878,414. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $74.03 billion, a PE ratio of 20.30, a P/E/G ratio of 5.52 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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $488.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $484.93.

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

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 36.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $550.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 1,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $924,041.79. This represents a 65.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total transaction of $485,590.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 319 shares in the company, valued at $156,310. This trade represents 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 valued at $8,323,150. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.