Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. Invests $286,000 in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 609 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,763 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,571,000 after buying an additional 797 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 17.3% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $208,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.6% during the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 1,366 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $721,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 18.0% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $917,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.31.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $468.75 on Monday. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $476.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $499.60. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $67.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 27.94 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman 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.