
Northrop Grumman [NOC] on Thursday swung to a loss in its fourth quarter due to a change it adopted a year ago in accounting for pension and other post-retirement benefits, but sales were higher, free cash flow was robust, operating results were strong, adjusted earnings were well above consensus estimates and the company is forecasting top and bottom line growth in 2020. The net loss in the quarter, which includes a $1.4 billion expense related to use of the mark-to-mark…