Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Makes New $1.75 Million Investment in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,945 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,749,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,421,645 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,710,554,000 after acquiring an additional 155,344 shares in the last quarter. Soundwatch Capital LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter valued at $6,457,274,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,115,519 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,554,299,000 after purchasing an additional 14,980 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.8% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,933,061 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,466,472,000 after purchasing an additional 308,680 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 26.7% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,051,226 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $640,534,000 after purchasing an additional 221,431 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $765.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. UBS Group raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $777.00 to $778.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Alembic Global Advisors raised Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $662.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Vertical Research reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $688.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $765.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $688.79.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $705.31 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $604.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $591.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 0.04. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $426.24 and a fifty-two week high of $707.66.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.97 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $11.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 9.97%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.39 EPS. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 31.72%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total value of $54,715.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,414,826.48. This represents a 2.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total transaction of $4,200,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 194,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $116,761,200. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 10,192 shares of company stock worth $6,164,745 over the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.