Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) CEO Sells $1,856,250.00 in Stock

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $1,856,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 209,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,505,490. This represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 4.0%

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $517.22 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $490.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $482.57. 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 12-month low of $422.19 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $74.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14.

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

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NOC. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial dropped their price target 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. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $545.31.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Northrop Grumman

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.