Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Stake Raised by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 6.8% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 18,286 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 1,164 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $9,314,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 353 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $201,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 1,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Portfolios Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Portfolios Inc. now owns 1,789 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,020,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, South Plains Financial Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 896 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $511,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $666.00 to $685.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $635.00 to $600.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $620.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $617.00 to $667.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $661.30.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $547.53, for a total transaction of $52,015.35. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,405,299.29. This represents a 2.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:NOC opened at $552.29 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $78.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of -0.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $541.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $609.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.17. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $479.02 and a 52 week high of $774.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $10.88 billion during 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 company’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $8.15 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.600-29.100 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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

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.