Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. cut its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,137 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 60 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $534,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NOC. Citigroup increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial began coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.5 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $487.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $469.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $495.11.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.