UBS Group Increases Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Price Target to $643.00

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its target price increased by UBS Group from $614.00 to $643.00 in a research note published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on NOC. Alembic Global Advisors cut shares of Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $547.44.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE NOC opened at $519.35 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $523.54 and a 200-day moving average of $481.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Northrop Grumman has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $76.86 billion, a PE ratio of 36.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.34.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.61%. The firm had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 25.16 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,317,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,490 shares of company stock valued at $747,372. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $229,000. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.9% during the third quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,262 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,194,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 23.0% in the third quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,354,000 after acquiring an additional 832 shares during the period. Walter & Keenan Wealth Management LLC IN ADV boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Walter & Keenan Wealth Management LLC IN ADV now owns 575 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $264,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% 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.