Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Releases FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) issued an update on its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 24.450-24.850 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 24.650. The company issued revenue guidance of $40.8 billion-$41.2 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $41.1 billion.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.0 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $474.57 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $461.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $465.55. Northrop Grumman has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $496.89. The company has a market capitalization of $70.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.15.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on NOC shares. Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a positive rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a sector perform rating and issued a $450.00 price target (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Alembic Global Advisors raised Northrop Grumman from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and set a $532.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, TheStreet lowered Northrop Grumman from a b+ rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $497.23.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares in the company, valued at $917,317.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.