Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Director Sells $15,842.64 in Stock

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 33 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $480.08, for a total value of $15,842.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,106 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,971,208.48. This trade represents a 0.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded up $5.36 during trading on Monday, hitting $473.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 804,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 853,892. The company has a market capitalization of $68.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $476.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $500.01.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.6% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 28,004 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $14,788,000 after buying an additional 1,495 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 2.8% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,016 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,065,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $210,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 867 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,876 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,519,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $544.56.

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.