Wesbanco Bank Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Wesbanco Bank Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,846 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 85 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $866,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Ascent Group LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,131,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,069,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $780,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PBMares Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NOC stock opened at $499.56 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $72.79 billion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $478.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $495.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.18 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on NOC shares. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective 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. Citigroup raised Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $550.94.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.