Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Buys 14,083 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 381.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 17,779 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 14,083 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $10,272,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NOC. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 176.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,394,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 367.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,516 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,288,000 after buying an additional 1,978 shares in the last quarter. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,487.8% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 16,338 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $8,169,000 after buying an additional 15,309 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,865 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,432,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $815.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $806.00 to $745.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $742.00 to $628.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $660.00 to $620.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $702.63.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $551.67 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $481.28 and a twelve month high of $774.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $583.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $630.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.72 and a beta of -0.12.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.06 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $9.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.75 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 24.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.06 EPS. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. Analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 27.93 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a $2.47 dividend. This represents a $9.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

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.