Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC reduced its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,224 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 96 shares during the period. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,859,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $542.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $491.20 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $471.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $494.67. The company has a market cap of $71.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has approved a share 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 buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

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.