Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Stock Price Up 2.5% on Analyst Upgrade

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) shares were up 2.5% during trading on Thursday after Robert W. Baird upgraded the stock from a hold rating to an outperform rating. Robert W. Baird now has a $675.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $550.00. Northrop Grumman traded as high as $556.56 and last traded at $552.8190. Approximately 1,053,955 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 13% from the average daily volume of 928,977 shares. The stock had previously closed at $539.31.

NOC has been the topic of several other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $615.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $745.00 to $765.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $617.00 to $667.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $612.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $641.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark Welsh, III sold 95 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $547.53, for a total transaction of $52,015.35. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,405,299.29. This trade represents a 2.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Key Northrop Grumman News

Here are the key news stories impacting Northrop Grumman this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 earnings beat expectations and full-year guidance was raised. Northrop Grumman reported adjusted earnings of $7.89 per share, ahead of the $7.18 consensus estimate. Management now expects fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS of $29.35-$29.75, above the $28.97 consensus, while revenue guidance of $43.8-$44.3 billion is broadly in line with expectations. Northrop Grumman Analysts Boost Their Forecasts Following Upbeat Q3 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Record backlog improves long-term revenue visibility. Backlog reached approximately $109.6 billion-$110 billion, up about 20% year over year, with a 1.5 times book-to-bill ratio. Management also highlighted expected 2027 sales growth of 5%-7%, supported by B-21 investments and strong demand across defense and space programs. NOC’s Q3 Earnings Call Highlights 2027 Growth and B-21 Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment improved materially. Baird upgraded NOC to “strong buy” and raised its target to $675 from $550, while BNP Paribas Exane increased its target to $600 and maintained an outperform rating. These actions reinforce the market’s favorable interpretation of the earnings “beat and raise.”
• Neutral Sentiment: Northrop Grumman’s appearance at the AUSA 2026 defense conference keeps investor attention focused on military technology demand and the company’s program pipeline. AUSA: Northrop Grumman’s Kenneth Todorov
• Negative Sentiment: Higher capital spending and continued margin pressure could limit near-term upside. The company has also paused buybacks, leaving investors more dependent on operating growth and execution to support shareholder returns. Are RTX Corporation and Northrop Grumman Ready to Break Out?

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the first quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 839 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $573,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.2% in the first quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC now owns 618 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Glenview Trust Co raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.1% in the first quarter. Glenview Trust Co now owns 1,796 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,225,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,141,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Quadrant Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 392 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $268,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a fifty day moving average of $522.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $548.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.44, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of -0.11.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The aerospace company reported $7.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.18 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $11.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.14 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 23.46%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $7.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 29.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st were paid a $2.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $9.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.17%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) is a global aerospace and defense company that develops and produces systems for government and commercial customers, with the U.S. government representing its primary customer base. The company operates across aerospace, defense, space, cybersecurity and advanced technology markets.

Its products and services include military aircraft and autonomous systems, space systems and satellites, missile defense technologies, command-and-control systems, cyber solutions, sensors, communications networks and other mission-critical systems.