Aspen Wealth Strategies LLC Purchases Shares of 847 Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Aspen Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 847 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $447,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of NOC. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 241.2% during the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 245.5% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 281.5% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 103 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE NOC opened at $509.02 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $74.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $523.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $482.45.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.18 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on NOC shares. Barclays raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.56.

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.