Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-two research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $693.60.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $630.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $680.00 to $815.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $685.00 to $750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $777.00 to $778.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 20,000 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $708.82, for a total value of $14,176,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 171,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $121,634,929.64. The trade was a 10.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $684.52, for a total transaction of $65,029.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,203 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,037.56. This represents a 2.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 30,192 shares of company stock worth $20,341,145 in the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 353 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $201,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Howard Financial Services LTD. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 1,143 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $651,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 1,973 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,125,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 4,012 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $702.20 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $626.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $598.91. The stock has a market cap of $99.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 0.04. Northrop Grumman has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $715.61.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.97 by $0.26. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The firm had revenue of $11.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 31.72%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.