First City Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

First City Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,448 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises approximately 0.8% of First City Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. First City Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,503,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 241.2% in the 2nd quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 245.5% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. BTIG Research started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on 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 boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $467.00 to $509.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $440.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $523.20.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $525.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $528.76. The company has a market cap of $77.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $496.06 and its 200-day moving average is $469.78.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.93 by $0.43. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 25.44%. The firm had revenue of $10.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.34 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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