Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by FCG Investment Co

FCG Investment Co decreased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 32.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,067 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 982 shares during the period. FCG Investment Co’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $970,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ascent Group LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,891,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,131,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PBMares Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NOC. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $550.94.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NOC stock opened at $499.56 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 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 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $478.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $495.36.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.18 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.