Sapient Capital LLC Has $1.13 Million Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Sapient Capital LLC lowered its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 10.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,488,412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,975,754,000 after buying an additional 410,736 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.5% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,194,298 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,846,289,000 after buying an additional 142,036 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 2,271,466 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,063,364,000 after buying an additional 80,887 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 29.2% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,605,679 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $706,804,000 after buying an additional 362,515 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,260,599 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $590,137,000 after buying an additional 16,275 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on NOC. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday. Susquehanna upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday. TheStreet cut Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $509.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $430,103.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. 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 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock traded down $1.13 on Tuesday, reaching $485.09. 907,848 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,001,923. The company has a market capitalization of $71.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $496.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $463.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $465.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The firm had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.31%.

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.