First Foundation Advisors Has $1.44 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

First Foundation Advisors increased its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 102.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,998 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,515 shares during the period. First Foundation Advisors’ holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Sanders Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 2,271,466 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,063,364,000 after purchasing an additional 80,887 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,260,599 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $590,137,000 after buying an additional 16,275 shares during the last quarter. Putnam Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 1,156,477 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $541,393,000 after acquiring an additional 28,934 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 789,096 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $369,407,000 after acquiring an additional 21,653 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 778,098 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $364,259,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC stock traded down $1.67 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $437.94. 720,019 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 781,277. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $443.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $455.98.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.38% and a return on equity of 24.09%. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.50 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 24th. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 57.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Northrop Grumman from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $477.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, June 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $483.00 to $518.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $510.36.

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.