US Bancorp DE Lowers Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

US Bancorp DE cut its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 102,684 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 2,129 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE owned about 0.07% of Northrop Grumman worth $48,188,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. abrdn plc grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 27.1% in the third quarter. abrdn plc now owns 12,868 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,756,000 after purchasing an additional 2,747 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 12,513 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,608,000 after buying an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 787 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 27.7% during the 3rd quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,607 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $849,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 21.4% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $461.74 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $469.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $496.18. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on NOC. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $574.00 to $545.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Argus raised Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.75.

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.