CENTRAL TRUST Co Decreases Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

CENTRAL TRUST Co cut its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,069 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 434 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $4,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 241.2% in the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 245.5% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 281.5% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 103 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $523.68 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $522.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $480.30. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.58 billion, a PE ratio of 34.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.34.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 25.44%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.18 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.79%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold 1,490 shares of company stock worth $747,372 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on NOC. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $467.00 to $509.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Barclays lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $535.00.

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.