Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Acquires 1,533 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,487 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,533 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,125,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 75.0% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 63 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $714.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $650.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $696.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $710.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $651.18.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total transaction of $54,715.76. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,414,826.48. This represents a 2.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $582.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market cap of $83.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.94, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.05. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $426.24 and a 52 week high of $640.90. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $571.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $564.61.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.43 by $1.24. The company had revenue of $10.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 25.49%. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.00 EPS. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.650-26.050 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 33.24%.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company’s portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company’s work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.