Yacktman Asset Management LP Sells 52,577 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Yacktman Asset Management LP cut its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 18.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 234,193 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 52,577 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman accounts for 1.6% of Yacktman Asset Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Yacktman Asset Management LP owned about 0.16% of Northrop Grumman worth $119,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,949,556,000 after purchasing an additional 56,807 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,954,452,000 after acquiring an additional 23,808 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,417,850,000 after acquiring an additional 21,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,807,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,317,402,000 after buying an additional 109,308 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $368,706.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 7,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,819,575.04. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $3,793,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 201,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,964,243.54. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock valued at $8,323,150. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $504.76 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $487.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $484.77. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a one year low of $422.69 and a one year high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $72.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.92, a P/E/G ratio of 5.55 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.19% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of 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 lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $542.00 price objective (down from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $550.00.

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.