New Hampshire Trust Acquires 87 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

New Hampshire Trust boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,322 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the quarter. New Hampshire Trust’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,498,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NOC. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 27,156 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $12,744,000 after buying an additional 519 shares during the period. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC now owns 15,377 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,216,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $395,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 40.5% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 260 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, IAM Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. IAM Advisory LLC now owns 3,964 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Barclays cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $550.94.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $482.49 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $480.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $494.51. The stock has a market cap of $70.30 billion, a PE ratio of 29.89, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.18 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.71%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859 in the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.