754 Shares in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC Bought by Optiver Holding B.V.

Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 754 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $459,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focused Investors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Focused Investors LLC now owns 211,800 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $129,054,000 after acquiring an additional 8,300 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 74.5% in the third quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,060 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,739,000 after acquiring an additional 4,721 shares during the last quarter. Huntleigh Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,818,000. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $1,015,000. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at $491,985,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $781.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $710.00 target price for the company. Vertical Research restated a “hold” rating and issued a $688.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $765.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $680.00 to $815.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $693.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 2,189 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $719.61, for a total value of $1,575,226.29. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $108,661.11. This represents a 93.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $684.52, for a total value of $65,029.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,877,037.56. This trade represents a 2.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,431 shares of company stock worth $21,969,404. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $704.50 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $651.67 and its 200-day moving average is $606.57. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1-year low of $450.13 and a 1-year high of $745.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $99.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.04.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.97 by $0.26. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The business had revenue of $11.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.39 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 31.72%.

Northrop Grumman Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.