BCGM Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

BCGM Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,492 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the quarter. BCGM Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,046,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. World Equity Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $253,000. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,822 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,263,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. MONECO Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 484 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 958 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $450,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Olympiad Research LP increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Olympiad Research LP now owns 578 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NOC shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $448.59 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $471.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $497.58. 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 company has a market cap of $64.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors 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 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.