Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP Has $635,000 Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP cut its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,356 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 58 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises 0.8% of Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $517,028,000 after purchasing an additional 502,060 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Phraction Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $677,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2,801.7% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 330,499 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $154,720,000 after acquiring an additional 319,109 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday. TheStreet lowered Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 target price (down previously from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $497.23.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.0 %

Northrop Grumman stock traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $474.57. The stock had a trading volume of 1,091,637 shares, compared to its average volume of 997,757. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $460.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.33 billion, a PE ratio of 35.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. The business 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $7.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, 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 SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the sale, the vice president now directly 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 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.