Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Buys 3,824 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 53.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,000 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,824 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $5,162,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,760 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $826,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. CX Institutional boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 789 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. MFA Wealth Services purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $383,000. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,594 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $595.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective 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. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $550.94.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $497.13 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35. 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 fifty day moving average of $478.60 and a 200 day moving average of $495.39. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.18 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.