Cerity Partners LLC Has $21.07 Million Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 34,582 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,601 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $21,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 176.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,394,000 after acquiring an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 367.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,516 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,288,000 after purchasing an additional 1,978 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth approximately $215,000. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.8% in the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 11,066 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,666,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $615.00, for a total value of $1,845,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 191,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $117,835,230. This represents a 1.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total value of $54,715.76. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,826.48. This trade represents a 2.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 10,097 shares of company stock valued at $6,099,716 in the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $630.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $650.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $714.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $654.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $700.00 target price on Northrop Grumman and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $647.35.

Trending Headlines about Northrop Grumman

Here are the key news stories impacting Northrop Grumman this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Trump floated a dramatic $1.5 trillion 2027 defense budget, which lifted defense stocks and boosted investor expectations for higher government spending that would benefit large contractors like Northrop. Trump proposes massive increase in 2027 defense spending to $1.5T
• Positive Sentiment: Northrop won a Navy contract (~$94.3M) for solid rocket motors (SSRM), adding near-term revenue and strengthening backlog in propulsion/ordnance. Northrop Grumman wins $94.3 million Navy contract for rocket motors
• Positive Sentiment: Northrop was competitively awarded the Marine Corps CCA work (with Kratos’ Valkyrie UAS) to rapidly develop collaborative combat aircraft — a program win that supports future unmanned/autonomy revenue. Northrop Grumman to Rapidly Develop Marine Corps CCA with Kratos’ Valkyrie UAS
• Positive Sentiment: Northrop launched a digitally enhanced ICBM target vehicle, highlighting product development and tech leadership that can support future DoD awards. Northrop Grumman launches digitally enhanced ICBM target vehicle
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and research services note Northrop’s strong earnings-surprise history and Zacks/other research highlighting the company as a potential beat ahead of quarterly results, supporting bullish expectations. Will Northrop Grumman (NOC) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical indicators (golden cross / rising relative strength) are signaling short-term momentum, which can attract technical buyers ahead of earnings. Northrop Grumman (NOC) Just Flashed Golden Cross Signal
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks issued small EPS revisions (mixed downgrades/raises) that mostly keep FY2027 outlook stable but add estimate noise near the next report. MarketBeat NOC coverage (Zacks estimates)
• Negative Sentiment: President Trump signed/ordered curbs on buybacks/dividends and signaled caps on executive pay for underperforming contractors — a material policy risk that could limit shareholder returns and triggered selling pressure across the sector. Trump signs order to block defense companies from buying back stock until arms production improves
• Negative Sentiment: Northrop’s CEO disclosed recent sales of several thousand shares (Jan. 5–6), which some investors view negatively amid heightened policy scrutiny. SEC Form 4 — Kathy J. Warden
• Negative Sentiment: After Trump’s comments and orders, intraday headlines showed immediate selling pressure on defense names, which weighed on Northrop despite positive contract/news flow. Northrop Grumman Stock Drops After Trump Warns Against Buybacks Over Investment

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 4.8%

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $619.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $570.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $571.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 0.05. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $426.24 and a 1 year high of $640.90.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 33.24%.

Northrop Grumman Profile

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.