Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. Has $3.28 Million Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,997 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises approximately 0.9% of Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $387,000. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 752 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $352,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 9,024 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,224,000 after buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 778,098 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $364,259,000 after buying an additional 3,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RWA Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,359,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NOC stock traded up $3.42 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $474.40. 1,365,358 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 996,139. The firm has a market cap of $70.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $414.56 and a fifty-two week high of $496.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $460.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.12.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The company had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 55.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 target price (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $497.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by 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.