Tidemark LLC Acquires Shares of 393 Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Tidemark LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 393 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $184,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 960.0% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 53 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 247.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Providence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 400.0% during the 3rd 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. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.6 %

Northrop Grumman stock traded down $2.95 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $471.74. The company had a trading volume of 202,524 shares, compared to its average volume of 965,794. The firm has a market cap of $69.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.34. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $414.56 and a 12-month high of $496.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $468.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $465.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.38% and a return on equity of 24.09%. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $483.00 to $518.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $514.33.

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.