Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC Trims Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,800 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 72 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $5,949,556,000 after buying an additional 56,807 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,186,681,000 after acquiring an additional 17,596 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,581,644,000 after acquiring an additional 18,791 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,315,729,000 after purchasing an additional 141,816 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 832,463 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $390,667,000 after purchasing an additional 23,018 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $506.88 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $476.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $492.88. 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 company has a market cap of $73.37 billion, a PE ratio of 17.89, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly 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 return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. Analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % 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 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on NOC shares. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

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.