Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Bought by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,016 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 653 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $29,968,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. London Co. of Virginia purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 74.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $517,028,000 after purchasing an additional 502,060 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Phraction Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $677,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2,801.7% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 330,499 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $154,720,000 after buying an additional 319,109 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NOC. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. TheStreet cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $509.38.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NOC opened at $473.53 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $414.56 and a 1 year high of $496.89. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $465.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $465.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.08 billion, a PE ratio of 33.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. The company had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.38% and a return on equity of 24.09%. Northrop Grumman’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $430,103.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,863,180.69. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.