Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Raises Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 14.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,859 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 231 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $872,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Aspen Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Aspen Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 904 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $424,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 15.3% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 21,728 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $10,197,000 after buying an additional 2,889 shares during the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 103.0% in the 4th quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 1,906 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $894,000 after buying an additional 65,469 shares in the last quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. Finally, SlateStone Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 10,007 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,696,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $488.98 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $474.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $493.74. The firm has a market cap of $70.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.25, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted 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%. Research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.