Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Position Reduced by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 164,451 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,983 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.11% of Northrop Grumman worth $77,175,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Americana Partners LLC increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,737 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $815,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. James Investment Research Inc. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. James Investment Research Inc. now owns 5,666 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,659,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 96.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,313 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 1,134 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC now owns 624 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $293,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 750 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $352,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 1.8 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $433.63 on Thursday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $62.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.30, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $472.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $498.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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, analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on NOC. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of 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 cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman 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.