Gradient Investments LLC Has $12.94 Million Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Gradient Investments LLC cut its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,570 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 902 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $12,938,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 that occurred on 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. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $497.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $478.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $495.39. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.80, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.18 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program 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 programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Barclays cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $550.94.

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.