Proficio Capital Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 428 Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 428 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 121.2% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 460 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 13.0% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 618 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $326,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 75.6% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,847,000 after buying an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 7.8% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,386 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $9,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth $1,056,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE NOC opened at $513.95 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $477.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $493.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $74.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $500.00 to $575.00 in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.06.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.