Vantage Investment Partners LLC Sells 3,385 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Key Points

• Vantage Investment Partners LLC sold 3,385 shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation, reducing its stake by 3.9%, and now holds approximately 82,497 shares valued at $41.25 million.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook on Northrop Grumman, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $588.85, driven by recent upgrades from various financial institutions.
• Northrop Grumman reported an EPS of $7.11 for its last quarter, exceeding expectations and showing a 1.3% year-over-year revenue increase, while also declaring a quarterly dividend of $2.31.

Vantage Investment Partners LLC trimmed its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 3.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 82,497 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 3,385 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman makes up approximately 3.0% of Vantage Investment Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Vantage Investment Partners LLC owned 0.06% of Northrop Grumman worth $41,247,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Hollencrest Capital Management raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 790.0% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 89 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $588.85.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $610.32 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.50, a PEG ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.10. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12 month low of $426.24 and a 12 month high of $610.85. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $585.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $529.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.84 by $0.27. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 25.52%. The firm had revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.36 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.000-25.400 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were paid a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.06%.

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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