Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. Reduces Stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. lessened its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 10.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,706 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Hollencrest Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 790.0% in the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 89 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the first quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 target price on Northrop Grumman and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $550.00.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $518.83 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $426.24 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company has a market cap of $74.68 billion, a PE ratio of 20.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.17 and a beta of 0.15. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $492.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $487.55.

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

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 36.46%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $368,706.33. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 7,552 shares in the company, valued at $3,819,575.04. The trade was a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $3,793,275.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 201,602 shares in the company, valued at $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. Insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,323,150 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.