St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC Sells 212 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC cut its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 9.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,108 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 212 shares during the period. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $989,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.6% in the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,778 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $775,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 74.6% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,167 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,253,000 after acquiring an additional 2,208 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 767 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 26,956 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $11,751,000 after acquiring an additional 9,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 104.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 246,581 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $107,260,000 after acquiring an additional 126,063 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $499.56 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $478.61 and its 200 day moving average is $495.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.78 billion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The company had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.18 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.05%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NOC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $550.94.

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.