Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group Trims Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group trimmed its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,125 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 64 shares during the period. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $527,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.1% in the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,782 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $784,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Patten Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the third quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 3,523 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,551,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 524 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Secure Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 price target (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $494.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC stock traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $452.19. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 304,675 shares, compared to its average volume of 980,887. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $67.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.35. The business has a fifty day moving average of $459.54 and a 200-day moving average of $464.20. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $496.89.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.49%.

About Northrop Grumman

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.