Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 23.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 213,555 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 65,012 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $106,751,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Soundwatch Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,457,274,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth $491,985,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 23.4% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,139,333 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,631,390,000 after purchasing an additional 974,633 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,425.2% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,001,198 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $512,624,000 after purchasing an additional 935,554 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at $369,205,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on NOC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $700.00 target price on Northrop Grumman and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $630.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $710.00 target price for the company. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $650.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $646.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total value of $54,715.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,826.48. This represents a 2.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $567.44 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $588.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $552.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.41, a PEG ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 0.07. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $426.24 and a 1 year high of $640.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.43 by $1.24. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 25.49%. The firm had revenue of $10.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.00 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.650-26.050 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 33.24%.

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.