Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Takes Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased 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 filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 79,159 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $37,149,000. Northrop Grumman makes up approximately 0.5% of Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC owned 0.05% of Northrop Grumman at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 291.7% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on NOC shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE NOC traded down $2.02 during trading on Thursday, reaching $484.48. The company had a trading volume of 388,053 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,121,465. The company's fifty day moving average price is $494.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $489.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $69.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.10, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.07 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.52%.

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.