Valicenti Advisory Services Inc. Has $4.93 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Valicenti Advisory Services Inc. decreased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 447 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman makes up approximately 1.3% of Valicenti Advisory Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Valicenti Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $4,930,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mason & Associates Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mason & Associates Inc now owns 1,306 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $690,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 552 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Asset Planning Services Inc. LA ADV raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Planning Services Inc. LA ADV now owns 12,010 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,342,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. X Square Capital LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. X Square Capital LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,810,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Investment Counsel LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 81.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC now owns 856 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Barclays raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $535.00.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $523.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $522.88 and a 200-day moving average of $480.30. The company has a market cap of $76.58 billion, a PE ratio of 34.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.34. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The company had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.18 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,490 shares of company stock worth $747,372. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.