Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by OLD Second National Bank of Aurora

OLD Second National Bank of Aurora cut its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,690 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 46 shares during the quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,421,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 241.2% during 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 in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 245.5% in the second 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 acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays raised their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $550.56.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $531.38 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $524.14 and a 200-day moving average of $485.78. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.92, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.35. 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 (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The company had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

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.