Analysts Set Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Price Target at $545.31

Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $545.31.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NOC stock opened at $489.55 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $491.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $482.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $70.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. The business had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. Equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $2.31 per share. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $156,310. This represents a 75.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,057 shares of company stock valued at $517,733. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.0% during the first quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 644 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,349 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $691,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. IAG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 271 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 3.9% during the first quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 553 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,049 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $962,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Northrop Grumman

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.