Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $542.88.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NOC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $506.88 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $476.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $492.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $73.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were 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 owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.3% during the third quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 8,320 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,394,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,049 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $472,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 900 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $933,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.