Wells Fargo & Company Raises Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Price Target to $509.00

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its price target lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $467.00 to $509.00 in a research note published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Susquehanna increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a positive rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and set a $532.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $517.54.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $477.57 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $69.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.33. Northrop Grumman has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $496.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $441.64 and a 200-day moving average of $455.30.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.93 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $10.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.02 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 25.44%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.34 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 25.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 57.62%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total transaction of $663,330.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,225,917.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smith Salley Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management now owns 23,247 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $10,134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,189 shares during the period. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth about $756,000. F M Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth about $16,403,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth about $170,000. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 1,735 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $756,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.