Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases New Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 518 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in NOC. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 76.5% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. IMA Wealth Inc. boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 196.3% during the second quarter. IMA Wealth Inc. now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 400.0% during the third quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, West Tower Group LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on NOC. Wolfe Research lowered Northrop Grumman from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $450.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, December 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $541.00 to $473.00 in a report on Friday, December 15th. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 price target (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $494.33.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares in the company, valued at $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE:NOC traded up $1.59 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $478.95. The company had a trading volume of 632,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 945,870. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $457.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $461.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $414.56 and a one year high of $496.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.86 billion, a PE ratio of 35.53, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.43 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The business’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $7.50 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 55.49%.

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.