Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Stock: NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Grows Stake

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 605.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,881 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,647 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $14,477,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,001,616,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth $1,298,141,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth $376,135,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth about $44,039,000. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 56,920.9% in the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 421,955 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $240,603,000 after buying an additional 421,215 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, Director Mark Welsh, III sold 95 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $547.53, for a total value of $52,015.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,405,299.29. This trade represents a 2.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $484.64 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of -0.11. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52-week low of $470.06 and a 52-week high of $774.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $530.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $557.66.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $10.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.80 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 24.25%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $8.15 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 28.600-29.100 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.97 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st were paid a dividend of $2.47 per share. This represents a $9.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $785.00 to $655.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $640.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $640.00 to $525.00 in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, September 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $612.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $644.70.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) is a global aerospace and defense company that develops and produces systems for government and commercial customers, with the U.S. Department of Defense and other government agencies representing its primary markets. Its work spans advanced aircraft, autonomous systems, space systems, missile defense, command and control, cybersecurity, and other mission-critical technologies.

The company’s offerings include strategic and tactical aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, aircraft systems, satellites, spacecraft, launch vehicles, missile-warning and missile-defense systems, secure communications, and cyber and information systems.