Victory Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,192 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 2,774 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $25,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,747,646 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,623,128,000 after buying an additional 621,636 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,915.9% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 438,521 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $191,173,000 after purchasing an additional 416,768 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter valued at $90,177,000. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth about $74,206,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 113.6% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 296,844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $129,409,000 after purchasing an additional 157,854 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 1.3 %

NOC stock opened at $493.99 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a market capitalization of $71.97 billion, a PE ratio of 30.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $523.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $486.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.18 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 51.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NOC. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Alembic Global Advisors lowered Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $474.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $550.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 1,289 shares of company stock valued at $685,273 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.