Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Invests $10.90 Million in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 21,972 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,899,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 176.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,394,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC increased 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 worth $301,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased 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 worth $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 1,978 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1,487.8% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 16,338 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,169,000 after acquiring an additional 15,309 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in 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 during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $547.53, for a total value of $52,015.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,405,299.29. This represents a 2.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $617.00 to $667.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $500.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $615.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $745.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $661.30.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $545.83 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $77.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of -0.11. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $479.02 and a 12-month high of $774.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $542.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $604.78.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.86. The company had revenue of $10.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.80 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 24.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $8.15 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.600-29.100 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a $2.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $9.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.39%.

About Northrop Grumman

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.