Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Reaches New 52-Week High at $512.38

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $512.38 and last traded at $510.84, with a volume of 40233 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $512.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $474.00 to $575.00 in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $440.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Alembic Global Advisors downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $523.20.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $75.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company’s fifty day moving average is $462.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $461.19.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.93 by $0.43. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.61%. The company had revenue of $10.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.62%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $695,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total value of $663,330.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares in the company, valued at $3,225,917.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $695,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.6% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,747,646 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $5,623,128,000 after buying an additional 621,636 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 1,915.9% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 438,521 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $191,173,000 after acquiring an additional 416,768 shares in the last quarter. Focused Investors Fund L P acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter worth $108,369,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,634,043 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,218,132,000 after purchasing an additional 211,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $97,866,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.