Two Sigma Advisers LP Has $417.06 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 20.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 888,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 153,100 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman makes up about 1.0% of Two Sigma Advisers LP's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned approximately 0.61% of Northrop Grumman worth $417,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $5,949,556,000 after buying an additional 56,807 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted 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 acquiring an additional 461,307 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,954,452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,417,850,000 after purchasing an additional 21,903 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,807,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,317,402,000 after purchasing an additional 109,308 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,045,249 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NOC. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE NOC traded down $1.64 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $471.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 505,766 shares, compared to its average volume of 903,191. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $67.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $495.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $484.85.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

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

Northrop Grumman 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.