Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Bought by Keel Point LLC

Keel Point LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 965 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 41 shares during the quarter. Keel Point LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.1% during the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,782 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $784,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Patten Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the third quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 3,523 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,551,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 524 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Secure Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $430,103.35. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $451.29 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $496.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $459.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $464.22.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.43 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.50 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 target price (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Friday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $494.33.

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.