Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.49 EPS

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The aerospace company reported $6.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49, Briefing.com reports. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The firm had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.50 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman updated its FY 2024 guidance to 24.450-24.850 EPS.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE NOC traded down $7.53 during trading on Friday, reaching $480.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,371,921 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,006,915. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.21 billion, a PE ratio of 35.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $462.59 and a 200 day moving average of $465.77. Northrop Grumman has a one year low of $414.56 and a one year high of $496.89.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is currently 55.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 in the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on NOC. Alembic Global Advisors raised Northrop Grumman from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $532.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday. Susquehanna upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $503.00.

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.