Bleakley Financial Group LLC Buys 1,323 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 10.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,898 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,323 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $8,468,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Soundwatch Capital LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at $6,457,274,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth about $491,985,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,933,061 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,466,472,000 after purchasing an additional 308,680 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,051,226 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $640,534,000 after purchasing an additional 221,431 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 49,898.2% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 169,494 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $84,744,000 after purchasing an additional 169,155 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $564.08, for a total value of $54,715.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,414,826.48. This represents a 2.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 2,189 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $719.61, for a total value of $1,575,226.29. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 151 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,661.11. This trade represents a 93.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 32,528 shares of company stock worth $22,024,120 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Alembic Global Advisors raised 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. 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 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $765.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $752.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Two equities research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $693.60.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC opened at $722.73 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $102.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81, a PEG ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 0.04. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $642.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $603.76. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1-year low of $437.83 and a 1-year high of $745.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 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 company had revenue of $11.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 31.72%.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.