Debt is smaller than equity and it can meet short-term obligations.
Metrics · D/E ~95% · Current Ratio 1.17
💲Is the price expensive now?
Not cheap (fair to slightly pricey)
Because it is a good, popular company, those expectations are already priced in.
Metrics · P/E 17.1 · P/B 4.3
💡Runs core U.S. programs like B-21 and Sentinel. Margin 13.4% and ROE 27.0% lead its peers, at the lowest P/E (17.1). But fixed-price charges swing earnings.
Compiled from public financial data. Not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. · Source: stockanalysis (margins, P/B, ROE are TTM) · P/E and P/B recomputed on the July 24 close, as of 2026-07-24
Business Summary · Key Value Metrics
One of the four largest U.S. defense primes. It runs core national strategic programs including the B-21 stealth bomber and the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile, with space, missile defense, and tactical weapons as growth legs. TTM revenue $42.89B, operating margin 13.4%, ROE 27.0%.
Current Price
$540.00
+1.22%+$6.52· Close 2026-07-24
Analyst Consensus Target (external reference)
$641.95
Avg. of 22 external analysts · stockanalysis (22-analyst consensus, Buy · high $815 / low $533)
P/E (TTM)
17.1x
TTM · lowest of the big three
ROE
27.0%
TTM
Operating margin
13.4%
TTM · best of the big three
Debt/Equity
0.95x
higher than GD (0.38)
Dividend yield
1.83%
quarterly · $9.88/yr
Market cap
$76.7B
as of 2026-07-24
Economic Moat · Key Business Segments
Northrop's moat is holding strategic programs for which the U.S. has no ready alternative supplier. The B-21 bomber and Sentinel ICBM underpin the nuclear deterrent, so the programs run on multi-decade horizons. Backlog reached a record $105B in Q2 2026, and the company secured ten multi-year tactical missile agreements worth up to $10 billion over seven years. It raised FY2026 revenue guidance to $43.75-44.25B (Source: company IR, stockanalysis).
Sole-source strategic programs
B-21 and Sentinel have no alternative supplier — they underpin the nuclear deterrent.
Record backlog
$105B, more than two years of revenue, giving unusual visibility.
Space and missile defense
Ten multi-year tactical missile deals worth up to $10B over seven years; demand is structural.
Best margin of the big three
Operating margin 13.4% versus Lockheed 11.0% and GD 10.3%.
10-Year Financial Trends
Revenue compounded steadily at a 9-year CAGR of +6.1% ($24.7B in 2016 to $42.0B in 2025), but earnings swung on one-offs. The 2021 figures — net income $7,005M, EPS $43.54, ROE 59.6% — reflect ~$2.0B of pretax gain on the $3.4B sale of the IT services business. Conversely, 2023 carried a ~$1.56B pretax B-21 charge, cutting EPS to $13.53 and margin to 6.5%. Excluding both, margin sits in a 10-13% band. Q2 2026: revenue $10.88B (+5.1% YoY), EPS $7.68, but margin of 10.1% trailed 2025's 10.8% on two program cost overruns.
9-Year CAGR: Revenue +6.1% · Operating Income +3.6% · Net Income +8.3% · EPS +11.1%
Source: SEC EDGAR 10-K (revenue, operating income, net income, diluted EPS, equity); fiscal year-end closes from Yahoo Finance; cross-checked against stockanalysis. P/E is year-end close ÷ diluted EPS and ROE is net income ÷ average equity; both match stockanalysis across all five overlapping years (P/E 8.89, 17.34, 34.60, 16.56, 19.61 / ROE 59.60, 34.68, 13.66, 27.75, 26.17). The 2021 divestiture gain and 2023 B-21 charge were confirmed in company disclosures.
Mega-Cap Value Metric Comparison
Northrop's 13.4% operating margin beats Lockheed (11.0%) and GD (10.3%) while trading at the lowest multiple of the three at 17.1x. Its 0.95x debt-to-equity is above GD (0.38) but below Lockheed (2.34). Lockheed's 89.2% ROE and 14.9x P/B come from buybacks thinning book equity, so they should not be read as business superiority (Source: stockanalysis, company IR).
Program cost overruns are ongoing— The $1.56B pretax B-21 charge in 2023 was not a one-off. Q2 2026 absorbed two more program cost overruns, pushing quarterly operating margin to 10.1% against 10.8% for full-year 2025. The company has said it expects losses on low-rate initial production lots.Source: company 10-K, IR, industry reports
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30% below its 52-week high— At $540.00 the stock sits 30% under its $774.00 high. Revenue and EPS beat consensus and backlog is at a record, so the decline reflects margin compression, program cost overruns, and political uncertainty over sustained defense budgets.Source: industry reports, stockanalysis
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Structurally volatile earnings— Revenue compounds steadily at +6.1%, but EPS has ranged from $13.53 (2023) to $43.54 (2021). One-offs are large enough that a single year tells you little.Source: SEC EDGAR 10-K
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Dependence on defense budgets— Most revenue comes from U.S. government contracts, exposing results directly to budget timing and shifting program priorities.Source: company 10-K
✦ ValueCrab Dashboard PreviewNOC $540 +1.22% · as of 2026-07-24
Q. What are the key value metrics for Northrop Grumman (NOC)?P/E (TTM) 17.1, ROE 27.0%, operating margin 13.4%, debt-to-equity 0.95x, dividend yield 1.83%, and a 9-year revenue CAGR of +6.1% (Source: stockanalysis, SEC EDGAR, as of 2026-07-24).
Q. Why did results collapse in 2023?Northrop recognized a pretax charge of about $1.56B on the B-21 stealth bomber program, disclosed as reflecting revised funding assumptions amid macroeconomic disruption and higher projected manufacturing costs. Operating margin fell to 6.5% and diluted EPS to $13.53; that year’s 34.6x P/E and 13.7% ROE embed the same distortion.
Q. Was the 59.6% ROE in 2021 real earning power?No. It reflects roughly $2.0B of pretax gain on selling the IT services business for $3.4B. Net income of $7,005M that year exceeded operating income of $5,651M precisely because the gain came from outside operations. Operating margin (15.8% in 2021) distorts less.
Q. Why does backlog matter?Backlog is revenue already under contract, so it shows how visible future results are. Northrop’s backlog hit a record $105B in Q2 2026 — more than two years of its $42.9B annual revenue — plus ten multi-year tactical missile deals worth up to $10B over seven years.