Canal Insurance CO Decreases Stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Canal Insurance CO trimmed its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 11.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,093 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 5,000 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman comprises 5.2% of Canal Insurance CO’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Canal Insurance CO’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $24,429,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GWN Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,151,000. Retirement Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $812,000. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.8% in the third quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,802 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,926,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 426 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Liberty One Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $60,076,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,000 shares of Northrop Grumman 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 194,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,761,200. The trade was 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total value of $54,715.76. Following the sale, the director owned 4,281 shares in the company, 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,097 shares of company stock valued at $6,099,716. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE:NOC opened at $625.23 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $426.24 and a 1 year high of $640.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $572.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $574.60. The stock has a market cap of $89.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.49, a PEG ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 0.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $623.00 price target (down previously from $688.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $710.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $662.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, December 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $652.76.

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.