Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 636 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 45 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 241.2% during the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 245.5% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $507.44 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $73.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $523.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $483.68.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The company had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.18 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 51.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Alembic Global Advisors downgraded Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.56.

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.