Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Purchased by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 351,670 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,061 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned approximately 0.24% of Northrop Grumman worth $165,035,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at $171,580,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,733,680 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $813,599,000 after purchasing an additional 343,018 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 225.8% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 327,998 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $153,926,000 after purchasing an additional 227,314 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $94,370,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 967,335 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $453,961,000 after buying an additional 170,976 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NOC stock opened at $539.96 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business’s 50-day moving average is $487.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $492.17.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,182. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on NOC. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $575.00 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $548.88.

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.