Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Private Trust Co. NA

Private Trust Co. NA lowered its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,053 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 626 shares during the quarter. Private Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,725,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DRW Securities LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 92.7% during the third quarter. DRW Securities LLC now owns 2,071 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,094,000 after purchasing an additional 996 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $112,222,000 after acquiring an additional 5,334 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 16,994 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $8,974,000 after acquiring an additional 1,747 shares during the last quarter. Marco Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the third quarter. Marco Investment Management LLC now owns 16,450 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $8,687,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.6% during the third quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 927 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Susquehanna raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $550.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NOC stock opened at $485.00 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $520.60 and a 200-day moving average of $486.94. The firm has a market cap of $70.66 billion, a PE ratio of 30.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,289 shares of company stock worth $685,273. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.