Vestcor Inc Purchases 2,452 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Vestcor Inc lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 65.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,214 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,452 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 176.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,394,000 after purchasing an additional 1,895 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 367.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,516 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,288,000 after purchasing an additional 1,978 shares in the last quarter. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,487.8% during the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 16,338 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,169,000 after purchasing an additional 15,309 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,865 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,432,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $544.73 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $472.02 and a 12-month high of $774.00. The stock has a market cap of $77.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.71 and a beta of -0.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The business’s 50 day moving average is $603.63 and its 200-day moving average is $631.07.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.06 by $0.08. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.72% and a net margin of 10.80%.The company had revenue of $9.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.06 EPS. The business’s revenue 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. Equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 27.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $2.47 dividend. This represents a $9.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 30.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NOC. Weiss Ratings cut Northrop Grumman from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $765.00 to $745.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $660.00 to $620.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $742.00 to $628.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $815.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $702.63.

Northrop Grumman Profile

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.