Brookstone Capital Management Cuts Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Brookstone Capital Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.6% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,823 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 45 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,351,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. London Co. of Virginia purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $165,786,000. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 1,402.9% in the first quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 12,925 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,186,000 after acquiring an additional 12,065 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 7,574.5% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 123,637 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $57,879,000 after purchasing an additional 122,026 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Red Mountain Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $264,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $530.00 to $500.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $510.36.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.2 %

NOC stock opened at $435.95 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $456.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $459.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $414.56 and a 1-year high of $496.89. The firm has a market cap of $64.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.49, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.38% and a return on equity of 24.09%. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.62%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. The company's Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic ISR systems and vertical take-off and landing tactical ISR systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems.