Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Buys 2,562 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 76.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,898 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,562 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,768,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 16,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,818,000 after purchasing an additional 2,770 shares during the last quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $22,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,786 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth approximately $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $112,222,000 after acquiring an additional 5,334 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AIA Group Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 7,458 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,938,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated 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 SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on NOC. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $574.00 to $545.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.75.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $459.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The company’s 50-day moving average is $469.59 and its 200 day moving average is $496.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

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.