Cerity Partners LLC Acquires 2,601 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jan 10th, 2026

Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC – Free Report) by 8.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,582 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,601 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $21,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 75.0% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 63 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 29.2% in the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 93 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 138.1% in the second quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 100 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $615.00, for a total transaction of $1,845,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 191,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $117,835,230. The trade was a 1.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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 transaction of $54,715.76. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,414,826.48. The trade was a 2.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 10,097 shares of company stock worth $6,099,716 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 4.8%

NYSE NOC opened at $619.31 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $88.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 0.05. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $640.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The business’s fifty day moving average is $570.08 and its 200 day moving average is $571.51.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm 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 was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $623.00 price objective (down from $688.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Friday. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $654.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $630.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on Northrop Grumman to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $662.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $647.35.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on NOC

More Northrop Grumman News

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 Profile

(Free Report)

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.