Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Bought by Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 312.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,995 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 46,975 shares during the quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $29,094,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors grew 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. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $952,962,000 after purchasing an additional 450,858 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 337.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 482,112 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $226,250,000 after purchasing an additional 371,814 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $171,580,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,733,680 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $813,599,000 after purchasing an additional 343,018 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,632 in the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on NOC. Truist Financial cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded up $2.99 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $489.03. 198,476 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 887,759. 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 one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.25, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $497.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $487.90.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.07 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.52%.

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.