Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires New Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 49,215 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,108,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,949,556,000 after acquiring an additional 56,807 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,954,452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,417,850,000 after buying an additional 21,903 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,533,378 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,188,889,000 after buying an additional 107,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 967,335 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $453,961,000 after buying an additional 170,976 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $486.23 on Friday. 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’s 50-day moving average price is $479.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $492.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (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 anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board 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 reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $500.00 to $575.00 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.06.

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.