Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC), and raised the price target to $250.00 (from $233.00), following the company's 2Q earnings report. Management increased 2016 EPS guidance to reflect a tax expense reduction of $40mm in Q3 and better operations. EPS for 2016 is guided to be in the range of $10.75-$11.00 up from $10.40-$10.70.

Analyst Howard Rubel commented, "NOC reported Q2:16 EPS from cont. ops of $2.85, which topped expectations on better performance. The 2016 EPS guidance range was raised by 3% at the mid-point to reflect the results and a $0.22 Q3:16 tax benefit. Our 2016 EPS est. is raised to $11.05 from $10.60. Our 2017 and 2018 EPS estimate are $11.45 and $12.85, respectively."

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Shares of Northrop Grumman closed at $217.81 yesterday.