Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Given New $625.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its price objective boosted by Morgan Stanley from $580.00 to $625.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

NOC has been the topic of several other research reports. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus raised Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $548.88.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NOC stock opened at $539.96 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $488.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $492.14. 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 stock has a market cap of $77.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. Northrop Grumman has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,182. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.