Baird Financial Group Inc. Cuts Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Baird Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 31.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,406 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 7,030 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $7,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. First United Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 641.0% during the second quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 778 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $389,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,989.8% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 125,867 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $64,445,000 after buying an additional 119,844 shares during the period. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. lifted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Ally Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Ally Financial Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,536,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at approximately $491,985,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $720.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $688.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Susquehanna raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $650.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $696.00 price target on Northrop Grumman in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $646.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total transaction of $54,715.76. Following the sale, the director owned 4,281 shares in the company, valued at $2,414,826.48. This represents a 2.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $552.88 on Tuesday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $426.24 and a 52 week high of $640.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $78.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.89, a PEG ratio of 4.81 and a beta of 0.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $584.07 and a 200-day moving average of $557.76.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $10.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.49% and a net margin of 9.82%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $7.00 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.650-26.050 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.24%.

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.