Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $646.9375.

NOC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $688.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $710.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $572.53 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $640.90. The stock has a market cap of $81.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 0.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $588.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $554.49.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total transaction of $54,715.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,414,826.48. This trade represents a 2.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Coign Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Coign Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,294 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $647,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Howard Financial Services LTD. boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.5% during the third quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 1,127 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $687,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. West Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.3% in the third quarter. West Wealth Group LLC now owns 412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 1,243 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $621,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Chesley Taft & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 1,375 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $838,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.