Amalgamated Bank Sells 306 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Amalgamated Bank lessened its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,769 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 306 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $12,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 36.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 8,348 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,398,000 after acquiring an additional 2,246 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.2% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 28,825 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $15,222,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth about $522,000. abrdn plc increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 27.1% in the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 12,868 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,756,000 after buying an additional 2,747 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traynor Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 23,177 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $12,239,000 after buying an additional 1,011 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NOC. Truist Financial began coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.5 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $461.03 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $66.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $469.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $497.05.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 291 shares of company stock valued at $129,184 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.