Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group Sells 64 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group lessened its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,125 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 64 shares during the quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $527,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. NBW Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. NBW Capital LLC now owns 8,063 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,775,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. Twin Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,334 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $624,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,416 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,131,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 1,402 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $656,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 12,951 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,063,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on NOC shares. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective (down previously from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $494.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $430,103.35. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock traded up $0.14 during trading on Thursday, reaching $452.19. 304,675 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 980,887. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $496.89. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $459.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $464.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. The business had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $7.50 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.49%.

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.