Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Sells 420 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC lessened its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 49.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 436 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 420 shares during the quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $388,448,000 after purchasing an additional 372,500 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,315,729,000 after acquiring an additional 141,816 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth about $66,171,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $622,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 154.7% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 157,601 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $83,224,000 after purchasing an additional 95,724 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $503.09 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $73.30 billion, a PE ratio of 31.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $478.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $496.86. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 19th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $550.94.

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.