Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Stake Boosted by ProShare Advisors LLC

ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 3.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,951 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 941 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $12,063,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,169,195 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,707,203,000 after purchasing an additional 168,267 shares during the period. Sage Capital Advisors llc acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $5,773,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at about $3,308,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at about $1,298,141,000. Finally, AXQ Capital LP purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth about $1,461,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $550.17 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $470.06 and a 52 week high of $774.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $520.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $590.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.16 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of -0.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 20th. The aerospace company reported $7.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.18 by $0.71. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 23.46%. The firm had revenue of $11.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.67 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 29.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st were given a $2.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $9.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. They set a “buy” rating and a $680.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $550.00 to $675.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $785.00 to $655.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $556.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $643.74.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other news, Director Mark Welsh, III sold 98 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $555.65, for a total transaction of $54,453.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,397,074.10. This trade represents a 2.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Northrop Grumman

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. government representing its primary customer base. The company operates across aerospace, defense, space, cybersecurity and advanced technology markets.

Its products and services include military aircraft and autonomous systems, space systems and satellites, missile defense technologies, command-and-control systems, cyber solutions, sensors, communications networks and other mission-critical systems.