Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Raised to Strong-Buy at Guggenheim

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) was upgraded by research analysts at Guggenheim to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday, Zacks reports.

NOC has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $617.00 to $667.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $685.00 to $704.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $620.00 to $580.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $745.00 price objective on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $620.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $659.86.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC opened at $530.70 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $542.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $587.21. Northrop Grumman has a 52-week low of $479.02 and a 52-week high of $774.00. The company has a market cap of $75.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.86, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of -0.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Mark Welsh, III sold 95 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director owned 4,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,405,299.29. This trade represents a 2.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 7.0% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 61,436 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $41,914,000 after acquiring an additional 4,041 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,149,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,793,478,000 after purchasing an additional 17,948 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,125,139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,781,986,000 after purchasing an additional 128,855 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 115,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $66,000,000 after purchasing an additional 8,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 27,894 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $15,905,000 after purchasing an additional 5,193 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global aerospace and defense company that develops and delivers systems, platforms and technologies for government and commercial customers. Its activities include the design and production of military aircraft, autonomous systems, spacecraft, launch vehicles, missile-defense systems, command-and-control networks, cyber solutions, sensors and other mission-critical technologies.

The company serves the U.S. Department of Defense, other U.S. government agencies and international customers.