Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 33 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $481.39, for a total value of $15,885.87. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,000,175.45. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.
NOC traded down $7.05 during trading on Friday, reaching $472.52. 388,869 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 857,387. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The stock's 50-day moving average is $513.61 and its 200 day moving average is $487.60. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.85 billion, a PE ratio of 29.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.33.
Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.18 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 241.2% during the 2nd quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 245.5% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $40,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NOC. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Alembic Global Advisors cut Northrop Grumman from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $560.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $550.56.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on 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.
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.
Before you consider Northrop Grumman, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Northrop Grumman wasn't on the list.
While Northrop Grumman currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.