Fmr LLC Buys 109,308 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Fmr LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,807,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 109,308 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,317,402,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 291.7% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,472 shares of company stock worth $2,111,332 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 5.6 %

Shares of NOC opened at $486.23 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $70.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $479.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $492.23.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 29.08%.

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

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

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.