JLB & Associates Inc. Acquires 600 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

JLB & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman accounts for approximately 2.1% of JLB & Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. JLB & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $15,207,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 8,857 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,132,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,417,850,000 after purchasing an additional 21,903 shares in the last quarter. RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $284,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.4% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 156,149 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $73,279,000 after purchasing an additional 66,638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bay Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $363,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of NOC stock opened at $496.89 on Tuesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $422.19 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. 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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $491.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $482.58. The company has a market cap of $71.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.53, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released 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). The company had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company 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 $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 36.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on NOC shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $545.31.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total transaction of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $156,310. This represents a 75.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $1,856,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 209,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,505,490. This represents a 1.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,322,279. Corporate insiders own 0.23% 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.