Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Trading Down 3.6% on Insider Selling

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 3.6% on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $499.43 and last traded at $498.30. Approximately 410,404 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 883,522 shares. The stock had previously closed at $516.72.

Specifically, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 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 transaction of $3,793,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 201,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $101,964,243.54. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 209,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,505,490. This represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NOC has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price objective on Northrop Grumman and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $71.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $490.98 and a 200-day moving average of $482.53.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $2.31 per share. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 3.0% in the first quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 644 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the period. Salvus Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.5% during the first quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,349 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $691,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 8.4% during the first quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 271 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.9% in the first quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 553 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

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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