Ethic Inc. Has $7.57 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Ethic Inc. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 17.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,277 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,011 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $7,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 200.0% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 48 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.5%

NOC opened at $549.40 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $453.01 and a fifty-two week high of $774.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.20, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of -0.11. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $678.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $636.03.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.06 by $0.08. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 24.72%. The firm had revenue of $9.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.06 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 27.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were paid a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 147 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $732.98, for a total value of $107,748.06. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,850,774.50. This represents a 5.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 2,189 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $719.61, for a total transaction of $1,575,226.29. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 151 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,661.11. This represents a 93.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $727.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Vertical Research reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $688.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $660.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $710.74.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.