Vanguard Group Inc. Has $8.25 Billion Stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,531,586 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 109,941 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.48% of Northrop Grumman worth $8,245,066,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NOC. Soundwatch Capital LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,457,274,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth $491,985,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.8% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,933,061 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,466,472,000 after acquiring an additional 308,680 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 26.7% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,051,226 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $640,534,000 after acquiring an additional 221,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 49,898.2% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 169,494 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $84,744,000 after purchasing an additional 169,155 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $684.52, for a total value of $65,029.40. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,877,037.56. The trade was a 2.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $708.82, for a total transaction of $14,176,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 171,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $121,634,929.64. The trade was a 10.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,192 shares of company stock valued at $20,341,145. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $765.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $727.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Monday, January 12th. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $752.00 target price on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $781.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $693.60.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC stock opened at $702.20 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $426.24 and a 12-month high of $715.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $629.70 and a 200-day moving average of $600.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 0.04.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.97 by $0.26. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 9.97%.The business had revenue of $11.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 31.72%.

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.