Focused Investors LLC Sells 1,900 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Focused Investors LLC cut its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 214,300 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,900 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises about 3.2% of Focused Investors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. Focused Investors LLC owned 0.15% of Northrop Grumman worth $100,569,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at $1,528,000. Intellus Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $341,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 65,194 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,601,000 after buying an additional 1,836 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,610 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,510,000 after acquiring an additional 1,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 45.6% in the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 12,980 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,091,000 after acquiring an additional 4,066 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $492.25 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $475.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $493.32. The stock has a market cap of $71.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on NOC. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. Corporate 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.