Corebridge Financial Inc. Sells 1,631 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Corebridge Financial Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 31,477 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,631 shares during the quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $14,772,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NOC opened at $506.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $73.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $476.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $492.88.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on NOC shares. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $542.88.

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.