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Northrop Grumman (NOC) Beats on Q4 Earnings, Sales Estimates

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Falls Church, VA-based aerospace and defense operator Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC - Free Report) supplies a broad array of products and services to the U.S. Department of Defense, including electronic systems, information technology, aircraft, space technology and systems integration services.

Surprise History

Northrop Grumman has surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the last four quarters, resulting in a positive average surprise of 8.29%.

Zacks Rank: Currently, Northrop Grumman Corporation has a Zacks Rank# 2 (Buy) but that could change following its fourth quarter and full-year 2016 earnings report which has just released. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

We have highlighted some of the key details from the just-released announcement below:

Earnings: Northrop Grumman comfortably surpassed earnings estimates. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $2.66 compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.49.

Revenue: Revenues of $6.40 billion also exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.91 billion.

Key Stats: Northrop Grumman’s total backlog for 2016 came in at $45.3 billion, up from the year-ago figure of $35.9 billion. Further, the company generated cash from operations of $2.8 billion during 2016, up $2.2 billion in 2015. The resulting free cash flow improved to $1.9 billion in 2016.  

For 2017, the company expects to generate sales of $25 billion. On the bottom line front, the company expects to earn earnings in the range of $11.30 to $11.60 per share.

Stock Price: Following the earnings release, Northrop has lost 0.6% in the pre-market trading session. This reflects investors’ lack of optimism on the results, despite the company posting better-than-expected result. However, the price movement during the full trading session will show whether the results have affected the market.

Check back later for our full write up on this NOC earnings report later!

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