Merit Financial Group LLC Cuts Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Merit Financial Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 22.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,401 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,008 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,592,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $283,114,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $517,028,000 after purchasing an additional 502,060 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,488,412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,975,754,000 after purchasing an additional 410,736 shares during the period. London Co. of Virginia bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $165,786,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 2,801.7% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 330,499 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $154,720,000 after buying an additional 319,109 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the business’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 transaction of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 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 transaction of $430,103.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,863,180.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. TheStreet lowered Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $509.38.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $469.09 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $496.89. The firm has a market cap of $69.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $464.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The firm had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.50 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.31%.

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.