Kathy J. Warden Sells 3,750 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Stock

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $1,856,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 209,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at $103,505,490. The trade was a 1.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC traded up $20.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $517.22. The stock had a trading volume of 1,842,813 shares, compared to its average volume of 888,048. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $490.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $482.42. The stock has a market cap of $74.44 billion, a PE ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $9.47 billion during 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped 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. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $545.31.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter worth $27,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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