Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Acquired by Renasant Bank

Renasant Bank boosted its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 729 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the quarter. Renasant Bank’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $342,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays dropped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.88.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 3.4 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $491.20 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.10 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $471.57 and a 200-day moving average of $494.67.

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%. Analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

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.