Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Shares Sold by Versor Investments LP

Key Points

• Versor Investments LP has reduced its stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation by 28.4%, leaving it with 2,790 shares valued at approximately $1.43 million.
• The aerospace company reported a higher-than-expected earnings per share of $7.11 for the last quarter, beating estimates by $0.27, alongside a revenue of $10.35 billion.
• Northrop Grumman recently increased its quarterly dividend to $2.31, reflecting a shift from its previous dividend of $2.06, maintaining a 1.6% yield.

Versor Investments LP decreased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 28.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,790 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,108 shares during the quarter. Versor Investments LP's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,429,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Hollencrest Capital Management increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 790.0% in the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 89 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on NOC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $480.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. 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 report on Tuesday, July 8th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $625.00 price target (up previously from $550.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $586.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $3,793,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 201,602 shares in the company, valued at $101,964,243.54. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $1,770,195.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,827 shares of the company's stock, valued at $924,041.79. This trade represents a 65.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,536 shares of company stock worth $8,306,857 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded down $5.2310 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $591.9790. 616,625 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 736,066. 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 $84.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 0.15. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $541.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $504.45. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $426.24 and a 1 year high of $600.99.

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 the consensus estimate of $6.84 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $10.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.15 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.52% and a net margin of 9.74%.The firm's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.36 EPS. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.000-25.400 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 34.06%.

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.