V Square Quantitative Management LLC Boosts Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 469 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 30 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $248,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.1% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 16,602 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,767,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.1% in the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 1,095 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $578,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 51.4% during the 3rd quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 742 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 8,220 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,341,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the period. Finally, LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth about $202,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $530.79 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $521.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $479.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.12, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.34. 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 (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.93 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $10.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.02 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.61%. The company’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.34 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,317,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total transaction of $663,330.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares in the company, valued at $3,225,917.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $695,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,879 shares of company stock valued at $1,410,703. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on NOC. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors lowered Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $535.00.

About Northrop Grumman

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.