Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Stock Price

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its price objective boosted by Citigroup from $587.00 to $591.00 in a report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC opened at $473.94 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $68.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.72, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $476.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $500.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 27.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after buying an additional 372,500 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $171,580,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $94,370,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,315,729,000 after buying an additional 141,816 shares during the period. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $66,171,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.