Traynor Capital Management Inc. Buys 2,209 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Traynor Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,386 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,209 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman accounts for approximately 0.8% of Traynor Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Traynor Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $11,914,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $22,698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $112,222,000 after buying an additional 5,334 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 7,458 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,938,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the period. Finally, Aviso Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 110.7% in the second quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 1,896 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $827,000 after buying an additional 996 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman 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 sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup raised Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Cowen raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $550.94.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NOC stock opened at $502.03 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $478.98 and its 200 day moving average is $495.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The company had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.18 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman 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.