Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lessened its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 49.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,972 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,889 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,034,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 176.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,394,000 after acquiring an additional 1,895 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 947 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 10,279 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,823,000 after acquiring an additional 1,172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,050 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $962,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 target price on Northrop Grumman and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Seven equities research 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, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $553.43.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.7%

NOC opened at $497.92 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a one year low of $422.69 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $71.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.95. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $489.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $482.95.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 9.19% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The business had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.46%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $368,706.33. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,552 shares in the company, valued at $3,819,575.04. This trade represents a 8.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 319 shares in the company, valued at $156,310. This represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,322,279. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.