Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 241 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,345 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 241 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,447,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after acquiring an additional 372,500 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $171,580,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $94,370,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at $66,171,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 3.7 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $475.74 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $68.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $471.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $494.70. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued 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 1.73%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.88.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.