Northrop Grumman Corporation vs Vanguard S&P 500 Growth Index Fund ETF — how do they compare? Northrop Grumman Corporation trades at $572.3 (market cap $81.78B), while Vanguard S&P 500 Growth Index Fund ETF trades at $85.18. The key difference: Northrop Grumman Corporation pays a 1.63% dividend while Vanguard S&P 500 Growth Index Fund ETF pays none, and Vanguard S&P 500 Growth Index Fund ETF is trading nearer its 52-week high, Northrop Grumman Corporation nearer its low. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| NOC | VOOG | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $81.78B | — |
Sector | Industrials | Broad Market / Factor |
52-Week High | $768.02 | $85.42 |
52-Week Low | $496.02 | $65.32 |
Enterprise Value | $95.77B | — |
Dividend Yield | 1.63% | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Northrop Grumman (NOC) trades at $577.89, up 1.1% today, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages and a record $105 billion backlog supporting fundamentals. Recent Q2 2026 earnings beat expectations, with sales growth of 5% and raised full-year guidance (Seeking Alpha, 2026-07-23). Valuation ratios like P/E of 18.3 and ROE of 26.96% reflect strong profitability, though RSI levels indicate overbought conditions.
The outlook is positive due to defense spending tailwinds and strategic contracts, but risks include margin pressure from specific programs and geopolitical volatility. Analysts maintain a buy consensus with a $598.57 price target, suggesting modest upside from current levels.
VOOG trades at $85.18, down slightly by 0.02% today. Technical indicators show a bullish trend with moving averages supporting upside momentum, though the relative strength index suggests potential overbought conditions near-term. Recent news highlights institutional accumulation, including Apella Capital increasing holdings by 463.2% as of August 2026, and the ETF hitting a new 52-week high, reflecting strong investor interest in large-cap growth exposure.
The outlook remains positive given the ETF's low expense ratio of 0.07% and focus on S&P 500 growth stocks, but risks include high concentration in technology sectors and sensitivity to market volatility. Continued institutional inflows and bullish technical signals support further gains, though overbought levels warrant caution.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
Northrop Grumman is a defense contractor that is diversified across short-cycle and long-cycle businesses. The firm's segments include aeronautics, mission systems, defense services, and space systems. The company's aerospace segment creates the fuselage for the massive F-35 program and produces various piloted and autonomous flight systems. Mission systems creates a variety of sensors and processors for defense hardware. The defense systems segment is a long-range missile manufacturer. Finally, the company's space systems segment produces various space structures, sensors, and satellites.
Read more on NOC →VOOG is an index-based ETF that tracks the S&P 500 Growth Index, composed of the growth-oriented companies within the S&P 500. It selects constituents based on three key metrics—sales growth, the ratio of earnings change to price, and momentum—offering a highly liquid and low-cost way to capture the high-performing 'growth slice' of the broader U.S. large-cap market.
Read more on VOOG →