By Tess Stynes
Northrop Grumman Corp. said its board authorized the repurchase
of an additional $3 billion of the defense contractor's stock, as
the company aims to buy back a quarter of its shares by the end of
next year.
Northrop, the world's fifth-largest defense contractor by sales,
in October reported that it had increased its stock buybacks during
the third quarter to $753 million as it continued with the
effort--the most aggressive repurchase plan in the sector.
A number of defense companies have responded to U.S. budget
pressures by cutting costs to increase margins and buying large
amounts of their stock.
Also in October, Lockheed Martin Corp. said it plans to boost
stock buybacks and keep capital spending flat as the world's
largest defense contractor by sales forecast that the Pentagon
budget wouldn't hit bottom until at least 2015.
On Thursday, L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. said its board
authorized the repurchase of an additional $1.5 billion of the
defense contractor's shares over roughly the next 2 1/2 years.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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