Nomura Holdings Inc. Acquires 2,935 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Nomura Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 322.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,935 shares during the quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,800,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 960.0% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 53 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 247.6% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Providence Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 400.0% in the third quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $425.87 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $63.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.78, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $459.78 and its 200-day moving average is $461.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The firm had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $530.00 to $500.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors raised Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $513.23.

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.