General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Earns Hold Rating from Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reiterated their hold rating on shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a $300.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $345.00.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.38.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.0 %

General Dynamics stock opened at $263.11 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $291.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $293.70. General Dynamics has a one year low of $247.36 and a one year high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. The firm had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.04 EPS. General Dynamics’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that General Dynamics will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 43.26%.

General Dynamics announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. This trade represents a 26.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Dynamics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 34.4% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,020 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $586,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $339,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the second quarter worth $95,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 31.4% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,398 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in General Dynamics by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 22,288 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,508,000 after buying an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

About General Dynamics

General Dynamics Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense company worldwide. It operates through four segments: Aerospace, Marine Systems, Combat Systems, and Technologies. The Aerospace segment produces and sells business jets; and offers aircraft maintenance and repair, management, aircraft-on-ground support and completion, charter, staffing, and fixed-base operator services.