Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Acquires Shares of 2,022 Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,022 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $949,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 291.7% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $545.31.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $457.12 on Thursday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $497.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $486.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $65.79 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS 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. Equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.52%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,632 in the last ninety days. 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.