Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 8,703 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Fisher Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 203,811 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 8,703 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Northrop Grumman worth $95,647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $574.00 to $545.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.75.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NOC stock opened at $461.74 on Friday. 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 has a 50-day moving average price of $469.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $496.18. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $66.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last quarter, insiders sold 291 shares of company stock valued at $129,184. 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.