Qsemble Capital Management LP Lowers Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Qsemble Capital Management LP reduced its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 55.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,194 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,913 shares during the quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,687,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 16.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,087,913 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $474,276,000 after acquiring an additional 150,367 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $427,444,000 after buying an additional 3,211 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 22.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,427 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $297,937,000 after buying an additional 125,262 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 443,724 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $229,139,000 after acquiring an additional 5,203 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 357,466 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $188,767,000 after acquiring an additional 39,628 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NOC has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $550.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 1,289 shares of company stock valued at $685,273 in the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 2.3 %

NOC opened at $485.27 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $70.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $519.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $487.03.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The firm had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

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.