Means Investment CO. Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Means Investment CO. Inc. cut its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.4% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,498 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 109 shares during the quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter worth $807,000. &PARTNERS acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at about $217,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 330 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 1st quarter worth approximately $251,000. Finally, Peak Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 25.6% in the first quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,103 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,921,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total value of $663,330.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares in the company, valued at $3,225,917.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at $2,317,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,879 shares of company stock worth $1,410,703 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $530.79 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $521.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $478.93.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $10.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $593.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $467.00 to $509.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Alembic Global Advisors lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $535.00.

Northrop Grumman Profile

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.