Annex Advisory Services LLC Sells 59 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Annex Advisory Services LLC cut its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,117 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 59 shares during the period. Annex Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 40.5% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 260 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. IAM Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. IAM Advisory LLC now owns 3,964 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,860,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 154.6% in the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,683 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $790,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 936 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $439,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 8,546 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,011,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC opened at $482.49 on Tuesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. 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 company has a market cap of $70.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $480.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $494.51.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.18 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.71%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. TD Cowen raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $550.94.

About Northrop Grumman

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.