Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Increases Position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 53.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,156 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 4,562 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $6,736,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 121.0% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 6,640 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,400,000 after acquiring an additional 3,635 shares during the period. GAM Holding AG lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 51.9% during the first quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 2,338 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at $33,090,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 206.2% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,771 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,421,000 after buying an additional 1,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 18.8% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 795,839 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $407,477,000 after acquiring an additional 125,693 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $589.43 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $84.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 0.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $518.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $496.63. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $594.68.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.84 by $0.27. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 25.52%. The business had revenue of $10.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.36 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 34.06%.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the business’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 $368,706.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 7,552 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,819,575.04. The trade was a 8.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 319 shares in the company, valued at $156,310. This trade represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,536 shares of company stock valued at $8,306,857. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $480.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $586.79.

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.