Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $644.10 and last traded at $646.0770, with a volume of 295187 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $625.50.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $623.00 price target (down from $688.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $752.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Thursday. Alembic Global Advisors raised Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $662.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $714.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $656.82.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.9%

The company has a market capitalization of $95.20 billion, a PE ratio of 23.99, a P/E/G ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 0.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $575.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $575.70.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.43 by $1.24. The firm had revenue of $10.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.68 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.49% and a net margin of 9.82%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.00 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.650-26.050 EPS. Research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 33.24%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 97 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director owned 4,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,414,826.48. The trade was a 2.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $615.00, for a total value of $1,845,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 191,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $117,835,230. This represents a 1.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,097 shares of company stock valued at $6,099,716. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Soundwatch Capital LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth about $6,457,274,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $491,985,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,933,061 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,466,472,000 after acquiring an additional 308,680 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $137,280,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings 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 worth $640,534,000 after acquiring an additional 221,431 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

About Northrop Grumman

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.