Xponance Inc. Sells 509 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Xponance Inc. reduced its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,119 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 509 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $8,503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NOC. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,288 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,208,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.8% in the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 506 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 11.0% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 18,562 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,802,000 after purchasing an additional 1,844 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 4,969.7% during the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,853 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,035,000 after purchasing an additional 3,777 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 8.7% during the third quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 1,207 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $637,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. Susquehanna lowered 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 report on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $489.64 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $70.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company’s fifty day moving average is $473.40 and its 200 day moving average is $493.79. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has initiated a share buyback 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 reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.