OLD Second National Bank of Aurora Purchases 27 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

OLD Second National Bank of Aurora grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,402 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 27 shares during the quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 19.1% during the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Patten Group Inc. grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Secure Asset Management LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the completion of 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued 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. TheStreet cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $494.33.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded up $2.90 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $454.95. 155,573 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 978,805. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $414.56 and a fifty-two week high of $496.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $459.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $464.20. The firm has a market cap of $67.42 billion, a PE ratio of 33.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.49%.

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.