Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC Takes Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 463 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,747,646 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,623,128,000 after purchasing an additional 621,636 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 4.8% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,634,043 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,218,132,000 after buying an additional 211,459 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,688,511 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,765,543,000 after acquiring an additional 23,398 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,087,913 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $474,276,000 after acquiring an additional 150,367 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 22.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,427 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $297,937,000 after acquiring an additional 125,262 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $593.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $467.00 to $509.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $535.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $695,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total value of $663,330.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,225,917.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $695,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,317,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,879 shares of company stock valued at $1,410,703. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $531.43 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $78.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $520.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $478.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.93 by $0.43. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.61%. The company had revenue of $10.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.34 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.62%.

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.