Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 256,573 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Bessemer Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 32.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 541,524 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 256,573 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $329,963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NOC. Focused Investors LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Focused Investors LLC now owns 211,800 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $129,054,000 after buying an additional 8,300 shares during the last quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 29.4% during the 2nd quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 1,848 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $924,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.5% in the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,060 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,739,000 after purchasing an additional 4,721 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,015,000. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at $491,985,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $685.00 to $750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $777.00 to $778.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $623.00 price target (down previously from $688.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $662.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, December 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $688.79.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 2.0%

NOC stock opened at $691.03 on Thursday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $709.39. The business has a 50 day moving average of $607.16 and a 200 day moving average of $592.53. The firm has a market cap of $98.07 billion, a PE ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 0.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.97 by $0.26. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The business had revenue of $11.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $2.31 dividend. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.72%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total value of $4,200,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 194,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,761,200. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,826.48. The trade was a 2.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 10,192 shares of company stock valued at $6,164,745 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.