Horizon Investments LLC Has $2.30 Million Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Horizon Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 13.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,900 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 592 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investments LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,300,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% during the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,288 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,208,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.3% during the third quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 8,320 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,394,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,049 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $962,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $472,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 900 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $422,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $489.64 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $473.40 and its 200-day moving average is $493.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.88 billion, a PE ratio of 17.28, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. Equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $542.88.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.