Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Has $129.41 Million Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 113.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 296,844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 157,854 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.20% of Northrop Grumman worth $129,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC now owns 528 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 557 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 37.7% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 694 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $257,000. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total transaction of $663,330.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,225,917.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total transaction of $663,330.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,225,917.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $695,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,846 shares of company stock valued at $1,393,028 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $593.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Alembic Global Advisors cut shares of Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $523.20.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $525.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $496.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $469.70. The stock has a market cap of $77.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.72, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.34. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $528.76.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.93 by $0.43. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.61%. The business had revenue of $10.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.34 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.62%.

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.