Northern Financial Advisors Inc Trims Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Northern Financial Advisors Inc lessened its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 939 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 70 shares during the quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $481,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 790.0% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 89 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Susquehanna raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen lowered Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $576.67.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $1,770,195.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $924,041.79. This trade represents a 65.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,310. This trade represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,569 shares of company stock valued at $8,323,150 over the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $567.71 on Thursday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $570.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.93, a P/E/G ratio of 7.41 and a beta of 0.15. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $497.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $488.96.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.84 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.52% and a net margin of 9.74%. Northrop Grumman’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.36 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.06%.

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.