Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Purchased by Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 145.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,560 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,831 shares during the quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $18,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Capital International Investors grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after acquiring an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $952,962,000 after acquiring an additional 450,858 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 337.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 482,112 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $226,250,000 after acquiring an additional 371,814 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $171,580,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,733,680 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $813,599,000 after acquiring an additional 343,018 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,632. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several research reports. Argus raised Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $479.27 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $498.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $486.59. The stock has a market cap of $68.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.07 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

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.