Wall Street reacted calmly Thursday after Northrop Grumman warned it will report losses for the fourth quarter and full year of 2008 due to a charge of $3 billion to $3.4 billion related to acquisitions.

The Los Angeles defense contractor, which postponed release of its earnings from Monday until Feb. 3, said stock market conditions forced it to write down the goodwill value of its $5.1 billion acquisition of Litton Industries Inc. in 2000 and its $7.8 billion purchase of TRW Inc. in 2001.

Los Angeles-based Northrop forecasts 2008 earnings from continuing operations of about $5.20 per share before the charge in line with Wall Street’s average estimate.

JSA Research analyst Paul Nisbet told the Associated Press that the loss on paper likely would not impair Northrop’s outlook or potential earnings going forward.

The price on the books for Northrop’s shipbuilding and space operations “were too high given the decline in market values,” said Nisbet. “So, they have written it down to (reflect) the current market value.”

After a slight drop early in the day, Northrop shares closed up 10 cents, or less than 1 percent, to $48.08 on the New York Stock Exchange.