Brokerages Set Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Price Target at $652.76

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $656.8235.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $700.00 target price on Northrop Grumman and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $630.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $714.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $623.00 target price (down from $688.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $654.00 to $715.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $667.02 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $577.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $577.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.20 billion, a PE ratio of 23.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.05. Northrop Grumman has a fifty-two week low of $426.24 and a fifty-two week high of $669.68.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.43 by $1.24. The company had revenue of $10.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 25.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.00 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.650-26.050 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 33.24%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total value of $54,715.76. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,281 shares in the company, valued at $2,414,826.48. The trade was a 2.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total value of $4,200,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 194,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $116,761,200. The trade was a 3.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 10,097 shares of company stock worth $6,099,716. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. First United Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 641.0% in the second quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 778 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 29.4% in the 2nd quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 1,848 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $924,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.5% in the third quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,060 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,739,000 after purchasing an additional 4,721 shares during the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,015,000. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth $491,985,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.