World Equity Group Inc. Buys Shares of 540 Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

World Equity Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 540 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $253,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on NOC shares. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $544.56.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold 291 shares of company stock valued at $129,184 in the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $449.98 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $470.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $497.29. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $65.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.