Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Friday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. TD Cowen upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $565.00 to $505.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $553.27.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.0 %

NOC opened at $467.82 on Friday. Northrop Grumman has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $68.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $490.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $490.95.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 3.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 166,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $87,889,000 after acquiring an additional 4,969 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 13.7% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 330,647 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $174,605,000 after purchasing an additional 39,780 shares in the last quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $224,000. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $479,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.