California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 35,054 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 9.7% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 324,911 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 35,054 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $221,667,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Karpus Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $523.19 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $538.07 and a 200-day moving average of $623.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of -0.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $493.84 and a twelve month high of $774.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.06 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $9.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.75 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 24.72%. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.06 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 27.95 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $2.47 per share. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.31. This represents a $9.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.92%.

Trending Headlines about Northrop Grumman

Here are the key news stories impacting Northrop Grumman this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Defense stocks are benefiting from a broader sector rally as investors respond to expectations for stronger U.S. military spending, including a proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget backdrop. Northrop Grumman rises as defense-spending tailwinds and program momentum lift sentiment
• Positive Sentiment: Investor attention is building ahead of Northrop Grumman’s July 21 Q2 results, with a strong backlog and government contract momentum expected to support the quarter. Northrop Grumman to Post Q2 Earnings: Here’s What to Expect
• Positive Sentiment: Recent program news, including work tied to Sentinel infrastructure, is reinforcing the long-term growth story for strategic deterrence and aerospace missions. Northrop Grumman Planning To Add Hundreds Of Jobs For Sentinel
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary remains mixed-to-positive, with recent coverage focused on key earnings metrics and margin sensitivity, especially around the Sentinel program.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider trading data shows no open-market insider buying in the last six months, while several executives have sold shares, which may temper some enthusiasm.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $680.00 to $580.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $806.00 to $745.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $620.00 to $580.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $676.29.

Northrop Grumman Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.