Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Acquired by O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 22.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,855 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,240 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $8,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th 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. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on NOC. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of 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. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $575.00 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $545.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the business’s 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 owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $512.42 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $478.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $492.64. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. 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 company has a market capitalization of $74.18 billion, a PE ratio of 18.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

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