Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Stake Lessened by Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV

Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV decreased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 20.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 107 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 27 shares during the quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $50,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $492.25 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $475.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $493.53. The company has a market cap of $71.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on NOC shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. 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. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

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.