MONECO Advisors LLC Has $227,000 Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

MONECO Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 484 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. MONECO Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $227,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,186,681,000 after purchasing an additional 17,596 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,581,644,000 after purchasing an additional 18,791 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,315,729,000 after purchasing an additional 141,816 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $427,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,211 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 102.6% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $388,448,000 after purchasing an additional 372,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 2.5 %

NOC opened at $461.03 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. The business has a 50 day moving average of $469.99 and a 200-day moving average of $497.05.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on NOC shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $544.56.

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.