Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Raises Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 95.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,301 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 7,953 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $7,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Atomi Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 27.5% during the third quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 867 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $458,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,876 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,519,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted 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 purchasing an additional 797 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.8% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,063 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $568,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 17.3% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $662,868. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.31.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $468.75 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.54, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $477.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $498.99.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued 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 return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. Equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.04 EPS for the current year.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 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.