Capital International Investors Raises Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares during the quarter. Capital International Investors owned about 5.69% of Northrop Grumman worth $3,866,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Capital International Sarl lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Sarl now owns 43,949 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $20,625,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Ally Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $939,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 351,670 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $165,035,000 after purchasing an additional 8,061 shares in the last quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC now owns 42,818 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $20,094,000 after purchasing an additional 2,898 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farringdon Capital Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $396,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $539.96 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $77.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $487.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $492.17.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (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%. Research analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,182 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on NOC. Truist Financial upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays reduced 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 report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $548.88.

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.