Traynor Capital Management Inc. Increases Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Traynor Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,951 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman comprises 1.1% of Traynor Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Traynor Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $10,276,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 59.4% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 7,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,305,000 after buying an additional 2,753 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 41.4% in the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 3,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,541,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,514,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.6% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $622,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,890 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $845,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NOC. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Wolfe Research lowered Northrop Grumman from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $450.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet lowered Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $541.00 to $473.00 in a research report on Friday, December 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $494.33.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147 over the last quarter. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.3 %

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $1.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $478.95. The company had a trading volume of 632,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 945,870. 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’s 50 day moving average price is $457.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $461.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89. The company has a market capitalization of $71.86 billion, a PE ratio of 35.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.34.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $7.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.