Share Buyback Program Authorized by Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Board of Directors

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th, RTT News reports. The company plans to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE NOC opened at $480.00 on Friday. Northrop Grumman has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $507.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $487.88. The stock has a market cap of $69.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.33.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.18 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NOC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $565.00 to $505.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Alembic Global Advisors cut Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $546.81.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock worth $666,461 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.