Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Purchased by Carnegie Investment Counsel

Carnegie Investment Counsel boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,748 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman comprises 0.8% of Carnegie Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Carnegie Investment Counsel’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $27,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ascent Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,131,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $780,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PBMares Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.94.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.7 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $480.29 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $482.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $493.47. 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 $69.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.76, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.18 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.05%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.