UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Acquires 75,921 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 572,451 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 75,921 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.39% of Northrop Grumman worth $302,294,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $31,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth $1,056,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 7.8% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,386 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,253 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 75.6% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,847,000 after purchasing an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $391,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Alembic Global Advisors lowered 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. TD Cowen upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $489.88 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The company has a market capitalization of $71.37 billion, a PE ratio of 30.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $517.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $487.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $10 billion during 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 revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.18 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $667,727. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.