Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) VP Benjamin R. Davies Sells 464 Shares

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $474.71 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The company has a 50 day moving average of $469.50 and a 200-day moving average of $495.46. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 29.08%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Argus upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target 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. 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $542.75.

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.