Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV Has $1.04 Million Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV decreased its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,212 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 50 shares during the period. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,038,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 245.5% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.3 %

NYSE NOC opened at $462.68 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $485.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $492.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $67.41 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NOC. Barclays cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $551.40.

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.