Founders Financial Alliance LLC Has $394,000 Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Founders Financial Alliance LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 18.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 840 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 16,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,818,000 after buying an additional 2,770 shares during the period. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $22,698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $112,222,000 after purchasing an additional 5,334 shares during the period. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1,316.9% in the fourth quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 16,139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,574,000 after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $494.71 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $470.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $494.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors 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 buy 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on NOC shares. Citigroup raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $542.88.

Northrop Grumman 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.