Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 30 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 540 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 30 shares during the period. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 291.7% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $489.55 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $491.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $482.29. The company has a market cap of $70.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57.

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

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $2.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 36.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total transaction of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,310. This trade represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,057 shares of company stock valued at $517,733. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Argus raised Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial reduced 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 report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.31.

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.