Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) VP Benjamin Davies Sells 2,189 Shares

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) VP Benjamin Davies sold 2,189 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $719.61, for a total value of $1,575,226.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 151 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,661.11. The trade was a 93.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $11.77 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $736.60. 1,007,850 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,092,528. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52-week low of $426.24 and a 52-week high of $745.55. The stock has a market cap of $104.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.29, a P/E/G ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 0.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $636.07 and its 200 day moving average is $601.81.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on NOC shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $777.00 to $778.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $781.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $662.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $693.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

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

Northrop Grumman Company 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.