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.
10-Year Growth
Revenue$42.0B · CAGR +6.1%
Operating Income$4.5B · CAGR +3.6%
EPS$29.08 · CAGR +11.1%
10-Year Valuation
P/E (year-end)19.6x · avg 19.1x
ROE26.2% · avg 34.7%
Operating Margin10.8% · avg 11.4%
📊 Annual Data Table (NOC) — expand/collapse
Year
Revenue (B$)
Op. Income (B$)
EPS ($)
P/E (x)
ROE (%)
Op. Margin (%)
2016
24.71
3.28
11.32
20.5
37.5
13.3
2017
26
3.22
16.34
18.8
45.9
12.4
2018
30.1
3.78
18.49
13.2
42.2
12.6
2019
33.84
3.97
13.22
26
26.4
11.7
2020
36.8
4.07
19.03
16
32.9
11
2021
35.67
5.65
43.54
8.9
59.6
15.8
2022
36.6
3.6
31.47
17.3
34.7
9.8
2023
39.29
2.54
13.53
34.6
13.7
6.5
2024
41.03
4.37
28.34
16.6
27.7
10.6
2025
41.95
4.51
29.08
19.6
26.2
10.8
— = no data for that year/metric (P/E omitted before EPS turned positive)
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
●
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
●
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.