Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Has $7.82 Million Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. raised its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 2,770 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $7,818,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,222 shares of company stock worth $647,025. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $482.79 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $478.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $499.10. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.04 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Citigroup raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $544.31.

Northrop Grumman 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.