Meeder Asset Management Inc. Cuts Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 66.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,298 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 2,555 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $609,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Sapient Capital LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,049 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $962,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its holdings 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 valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 900 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $933,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC now owns 432 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $203,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.0 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $512.42 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $478.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $492.64. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.08, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. 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 (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 the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has approved 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 purchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NOC. Royal Bank of Canada raised Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $575.00 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.06.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.