Act Two Investors LLC Has $23.94 Million Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Act Two Investors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,021 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 638 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman accounts for 4.7% of Act Two Investors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Act Two Investors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $23,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Monetary Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 1,900 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Coign Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $603,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 60,693 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $28,483,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 684 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Texas Yale Capital Corp. lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 1,580 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $741,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 1.0 %

NOC opened at $517.29 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year 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 $74.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $480.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $491.62.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,127,182 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on NOC shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target 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. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $545.06.

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.