Coign Capital Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Coign Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,284 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $603,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 291.7% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,127,182. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $517.29 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $480.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $491.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $500.00 to $575.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $545.06.

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.