Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

NOC has been the topic of several other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $474.00 to $575.00 in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $550.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE NOC opened at $531.38 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $523.97 and its 200 day moving average is $485.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Northrop Grumman has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $77.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.18 EPS. Research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman will post 25.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 241.2% in the 2nd quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 245.5% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth $47,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

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.