Level Four Advisory Services LLC Buys 162 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 10.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $798,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of NOC. denkapparat Operations GmbH bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth approximately $368,000. X Square Capital LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. X Square Capital LLC now owns 3,473 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,630,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $2,892,000. Homestead Advisers Corp increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Homestead Advisers Corp now owns 184,672 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $86,665,000 after acquiring an additional 6,700 shares during the period. Finally, NEOS Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 26.2% during the fourth quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 5,965 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,799,000 after acquiring an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.4 %

NOC stock opened at $511.86 on Monday. 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 of $478.20 and a 200 day moving average of $492.68. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $74.09 billion, a PE ratio of 18.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on NOC shares. UBS Group reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna reduced 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.06.

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.