Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH Acquires New Shares in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 557 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $261,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $40,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $53,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on NOC shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $550.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $499.56 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $72.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $478.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $495.36. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The company had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.18 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.