Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Jefferies Financial Group Analyst Says

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from $690.00 to $710.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the aerospace company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 2.61% from the stock’s previous close.

NOC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $765.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $781.00 to $807.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Argus set a $785.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $709.65.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE NOC traded up $4.46 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $691.93. 194,052 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 954,865. Northrop Grumman has a 52-week low of $450.13 and a 52-week high of $774.00. The firm has a market cap of $98.20 billion, a PE ratio of 23.76, a PEG ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 0.04. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $710.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $634.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $11.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.39 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s 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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 147 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $732.98, for a total transaction of $107,748.06. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,525 shares in the company, valued at $1,850,774.50. This represents a 5.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $684.52, for a total transaction of $65,029.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,877,037.56. This trade represents a 2.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 22,431 shares of company stock worth $15,924,404 in the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 176.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,394,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 367.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,516 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,288,000 after buying an additional 1,978 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 99.8% during the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 3,143 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,571,000 after buying an additional 1,570 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 12.0% during the second quarter. Natixis now owns 6,035 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,017,000 after buying an additional 648 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.