Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Cuts Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC decreased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 28,526 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 299 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $13,387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 245.5% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC stock opened at $458.37 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.40, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $484.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $493.07.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The company had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.18 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NOC. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $551.40.

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.