Benjamin Edwards Inc. Raises Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 22.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,955 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 894 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,326,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NOC. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after buying an additional 461,307 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $952,962,000 after acquiring an additional 450,858 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 337.1% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 482,112 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $226,250,000 after acquiring an additional 371,814 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $171,580,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,733,680 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $813,599,000 after purchasing an additional 343,018 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,632 in the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $488.62 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $496.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $487.91. The company has a market capitalization of $70.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.07 billion. Research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on NOC shares. UBS Group lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $545.31.

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.