Portfolio Design Labs LLC Has $489,000 Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Portfolio Design Labs LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 125.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,041 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 580 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $489,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $388,448,000 after buying an additional 372,500 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,315,729,000 after acquiring an additional 141,816 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $66,171,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $622,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 154.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 157,601 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $83,224,000 after purchasing an additional 95,724 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.2 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $473.58 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $476.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $500.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 27.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.