Xponance Inc. Grows Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,431 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 1,116 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $8,628,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBW Capital LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. NBW Capital LLC now owns 8,063 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,775,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,334 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $624,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,416 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 1,402 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 12,951 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,063,000 after acquiring an additional 885 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $462.58 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $414.56 and a 1-year high of $496.89. The company has a market capitalization of $68.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.32, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.35. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $459.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $464.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $7.50 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 55.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet cut Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $494.33.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $430,103.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman 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.