American Trust Has $1.72 Million Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

American Trust decreased its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,591 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 74 shares during the quarter. American Trust’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,402.9% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 12,925 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,186,000 after purchasing an additional 12,065 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at about $870,000. Norden Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the first quarter valued at about $778,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 7,574.5% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 123,637 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $57,879,000 after buying an additional 122,026 shares during the period. Finally, Red Mountain Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth about $264,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC stock traded up $1.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $494.55. The stock had a trading volume of 1,045,802 shares, compared to its average volume of 916,339. The firm has a market cap of $72.32 billion, a PE ratio of 34.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.32. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $443.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $455.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $414.56 and a one year high of $505.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted 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 business had revenue of $10.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.02 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 25.44%. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.34 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.18 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. This is a boost from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 57.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on NOC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a report on Monday, July 29th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $440.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $530.00 to $500.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One equities 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $516.29.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total transaction of $663,330.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,225,917.80. The sale 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.

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.