Victory Capital Management Inc. Has $29.38 Million Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 5.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 48,219 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 2,676 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $29,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,531,586 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,245,066,000 after acquiring an additional 109,941 shares during the period. Soundwatch Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter worth about $6,457,274,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,115,519 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,554,299,000 after purchasing an additional 14,980 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,933,061 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,466,472,000 after purchasing an additional 308,680 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,051,226 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $640,534,000 after purchasing an additional 221,431 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on NOC. Argus set a $785.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $685.00 to $750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $727.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, BTIG Research raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $680.00 to $815.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $693.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 2,189 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $719.61, for a total transaction of $1,575,226.29. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $108,661.11. This represents a 93.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 147 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $732.98, for a total transaction of $107,748.06. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,525 shares in the company, valued at $1,850,774.50. This trade represents a 5.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 32,431 shares of company stock valued at $21,969,404 over the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Northrop Grumman this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Won a $225.1M Naval Air Systems Command contract to develop training materials for the E-130J program, providing immediate revenue and strengthening NOC’s role in airborne training systems. Northrop Grumman Secures a $225M Contract to Aid E-130J Program
• Positive Sentiment: Secured additional U.S. Space Force and Navy contract actions that expand its deep‑space radar and E-130J-related work, extending backlog and revenue visibility. Northrop Grumman Contracts Extend Backlog And Deepen Long Term Defense Ties
• Positive Sentiment: Awarded work to supply aircraft protection systems to Germany, reinforcing export and allied sales momentum. Northrop Grumman to supply aircraft protection systems to Germany
• Positive Sentiment: White House meeting where defense CEOs agreed to markedly ramp production of advanced weaponry — a policy/PR tailwind that implies higher future demand across prime contractors including NOC. Trump says defense CEOs agree to quadruple production of `Exquisite Class’ weaponry
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains constructive: the stock carries an average “Moderate Buy” consensus, supporting investor confidence in shares. Northrop Grumman Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy”
• Neutral Sentiment: Retail investors and market commentators are rotating back into defense names amid geopolitical volatility, a flow that can amplify moves but is fickle. Retail investor buying holds strong
• Negative Sentiment: Pentagon plans to ban Chinese-origin rare‑earth magnets in military platforms starting 2027, creating a supply-chain re‑qualification and potential cost headwind for manufacturers that use high-performance magnets. This could increase sourcing costs and delays for some NOC systems depending on exposure. U.S. Defense Manufacturers Face A Rare Earth Supply Squeeze
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage highlights the broader industry scramble to build domestic rare‑earth supply chains—good long term, but costly and potentially disruptive in the near term. Why Trump Wants Magnets More Than Gold

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $757.70 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $450.13 and a 12-month high of $774.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $675.40 and a 200-day moving average of $614.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 0.03.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.97 by $0.26. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 9.97%.The firm had revenue of $11.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 31.72%.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

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.