Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Given New $505.00 Price Target at Robert W. Baird

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its price objective raised by Robert W. Baird from $475.00 to $505.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. TheStreet downgraded Northrop Grumman from a b+ rating to a c+ rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a sector perform rating and issued a $450.00 price target (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a positive rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Alembic Global Advisors raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and set a $532.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $503.00.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC stock opened at $486.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Northrop Grumman has a 1-year low of $414.56 and a 1-year high of $496.89. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $463.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $465.78. The company has a market capitalization of $71.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.00, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.38% and a return on equity of 24.09%. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.50 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 24.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.31%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,863,180.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 960.0% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 53 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 247.6% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

About Northrop Grumman

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.