Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Grows Stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 13.3% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,655 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, 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 valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $480.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $588.85.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NOC stock opened at $610.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.04. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $426.24 and a 1 year high of $610.85. The firm has a market cap of $87.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.10. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $585.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $529.33.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.84 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $10.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.15 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.52% and a net margin of 9.74%.Northrop Grumman’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.36 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.000-25.400 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.06%.

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.