Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Cut to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

NOC has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $565.00 to $505.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Alembic Global Advisors lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $546.81.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $480.00 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.94 billion, a PE ratio of 29.74, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $507.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $487.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. Northrop Grumman has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.18 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $666,461 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,891,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,131,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.4% during the third quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $780,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PBMares Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

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.