Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 3,675 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 100,973 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,675 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.07% of Northrop Grumman worth $47,270,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $283,114,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $517,028,000 after buying an additional 502,060 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 10.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,488,412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,975,754,000 after buying an additional 410,736 shares during the period. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $165,786,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 29.2% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,605,679 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $706,804,000 after buying an additional 362,515 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $480.45 on Monday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $462.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $465.72. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $414.56 and a 52-week high of $496.89. The firm has a market cap of $71.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results 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. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.50 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company 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 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.31%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’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 value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. TheStreet lowered Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Alembic Global Advisors raised Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Susquehanna raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $503.00.

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.