Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Has $2.59 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 17.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,522 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 813 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,007 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $942,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 39.5% in the 4th quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $531,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Essex Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 819 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $237,000. Finally, Stolper Co boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Stolper Co now owns 14,798 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,945,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.94.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.7 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $480.29 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $482.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $493.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $69.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.76, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.18 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

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.