Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by First National Trust Co

First National Trust Co decreased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 13.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,952 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 802 shares during the period. First National Trust Co’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $234,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,937 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 2,585 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 24.3% during the 3rd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 848 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $447,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 836 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $441,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NOC. UBS Group lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $542.88.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $486.10 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $70.37 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $471.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $494.49. 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 (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

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

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

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

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.