Prudential Financial Inc. Purchases 227,314 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Prudential Financial Inc. raised its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 225.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 327,998 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 227,314 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Northrop Grumman worth $153,926,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 16,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,818,000 after buying an additional 2,770 shares during the period. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $22,698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $112,222,000 after acquiring an additional 5,334 shares during the period. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 1,316.9% during the fourth quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 16,139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,574,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $492.25 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $475.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $493.11. The firm has a market cap of $71.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NOC. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $542.88.

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.