Northrop Grumman Co. (NOC) Stake Lifted by Bank of Nova Scotia

Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 37,092 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,702 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $9,084,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 41.9% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,071 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares during the period. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth approximately $206,000. CWM LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 138.1% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,050 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $968,000 after acquiring an additional 1,769 shares during the period. GWM Advisors LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 16.5% in the third quarter. GWM Advisors LLC now owns 2,546 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $808,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 8.9% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 50,530 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $16,036,000 after acquiring an additional 4,131 shares during the period. 82.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 13th. Credit Suisse Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $302.00 price target on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, January 23rd. Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $346.00 to $318.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 14th. Finally, ValuEngine upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $336.39.

In related news, Chairman Wesley G. Bush sold 86,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $287.28, for a total transaction of $24,849,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 39,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,473,101.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 259 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.38, for a total transaction of $74,690.42. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,803,240.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 109,721 shares of company stock worth $31,542,935 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Shares of NOC stock opened at $287.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $49.01 billion, a PE ratio of 13.46, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.89. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $223.63 and a one year high of $360.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 31st. The aerospace company reported $4.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.11 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.73% and a return on equity of 41.24%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 18.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 22nd. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 22.50%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase up to 6.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as a security company for government and commercial customers worldwide. It provides products, systems, and solutions in autonomous systems; cyber; command, control, communications and computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR); strike; and logistics and modernization.

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