RWA Wealth Partners LLC Takes $1.36 Million Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

RWA Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,902 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $1,359,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $517,028,000 after buying an additional 502,060 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 19.7% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $7,731,000 after buying an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Phraction Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $677,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2,801.7% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 330,499 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $154,720,000 after buying an additional 319,109 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NOC stock traded up $13.65 on Thursday, reaching $488.22. 1,362,070 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,002,314. The stock has a market cap of $72.35 billion, a PE ratio of 36.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $414.56 and a one year high of $496.89. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $462.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $465.71.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.50 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is presently 55.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on NOC shares. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $450.00 price objective (down previously from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $532.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $497.23.

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.