Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Bought by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 93,579 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 218 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises approximately 2.3% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Northrop Grumman worth $43,808,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 70,532.5% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 637,105 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $347,611,000 after acquiring an additional 636,203 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $283,114,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $517,028,000 after purchasing an additional 502,060 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,488,412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,975,754,000 after purchasing an additional 410,736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, London Co. of Virginia acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth about $165,786,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $430,103.35. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock traded up $10.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $462.58. 903,960 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 989,637. The stock has a market cap of $68.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.32, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $459.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $464.26. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $496.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The firm 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 company earned $7.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 55.49%.

Northrop Grumman 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.