Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Invests $234,000 in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV bought a new position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 442 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $234,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,891,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $780,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PBMares Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $550.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,289 shares of company stock worth $685,273. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 3.9 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $500.34 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $72.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $524.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $486.03.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.18 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

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.