Friday, FBR Capital Markets reiterated Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC) stock with an Outperform rating and a price target of $75. The brokerage increased its 2010 first quarter EPS estimate to $1.33 from $1.26, and its 2010 estimate to $5.80 from $5.50.
Analyst Patrick McCarthy noted that Northrop Grumman reported fourth quarter results on February 4 that were lower than consensus expectations in revenues and EPS. The company reported revenue of $8.9 billion was lower than the consensus of $9.0 billion but higher than our estimate of $8.8 billion.
The analyst said that the company's revenues, excluding the recent TASC divestiture, were up 2% year-over-year. Segment operating margins were lower than expected for the quarter and were down year-over-year, mainly due to operational headwinds faced at shipbuilding and electronic systems.
The analyst added that the company's EPS were $1.19, versus the consensus of $1.26 and his estimate of $1.18. The company issued EPS guidance for 2010 at $5.70 to $5.95, on revenues of $34.0 billion to $34.6 billion.
However, the analyst noted that, despite decent results this quarter, there is likely to be additional volatility in ship systems over the next few quarters, and he views other large-cap defense names as more attractive investments at the current time.
Currently, NOC is down $0.58 or 1.00% and trading at $57.32.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.