Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 118.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,174 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 5,524 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $4,490,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% in the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,782 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $784,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 524 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 165 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. Finally, Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. now owns 727 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC traded down $5.91 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $469.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,443,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,144,324. The stock has a market cap of $69.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.80, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $464.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $414.56 and a 1-year high of $496.89.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. The company had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.77 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.50 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NOC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $483.00 to $518.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $509.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $430,103.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,863,180.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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 $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.