Northrop Grumman (NOC) closed at $456.24 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.52% move from the prior day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.95% gain on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.64%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.15%.Coming into today, shares of the defense contractor had lost 1.93% in the past month. In that same time, the Aerospace sector gained 1.42%, while the S&P 500 lost 3.49%.Wall Street will be looking for positivity from Northrop Grumman as it approaches its next earnings report date. The company is expected to report EPS of $6.03, down 6.07% from the prior-year quarter. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $9.12 billion, down 0.37% from the year-ago period.For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $24.80 per share and revenue of $36.59 billion, which would represent changes of -3.24% and +2.6%, respectively, from the prior year.Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Northrop Grumman should also be noted by investors. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.07% higher. Northrop Grumman is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).In terms of valuation, Northrop Grumman is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 18.5. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 16.89, which means Northrop Grumman is trading at a premium to the group.Investors should also note that NOC has a PEG ratio of 3.03 right now. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. NOC's industry had an average PEG ratio of 2 as of yesterday's close.The Aerospace - Defense industry is part of the Aerospace sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 226, putting it in the bottom 11% of all 250+ industries.The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com. Zacks' Top Picks to Cash in on Electric Vehicles Big money has already been made in the Electric Vehicle (EV) industry. But, the EV revolution has not hit full throttle yet. There is a lot of money to be made as the next push for future technologies ramps up. Zacks’ Special Report reveals 5 picks investorsSee 5 EV Stocks With Extreme Upside Potential >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research