Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.27 EPS

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27), Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. Northrop Grumman updated its FY 2025 guidance to 24.950-25.350 EPS.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC stock traded up $10.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $473.38. 1,329,267 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 885,333. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $491.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $489.95. The firm has a market cap of $68.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Northrop Grumman has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $545.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,127,182 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Northrop Grumman stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 176.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,970 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,394,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.