General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB reduced its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 16.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,101 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 598 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $817,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GD. Coston McIsaac & Partners boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 22.8% during the third quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its position in General Dynamics by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,482 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 10.6% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 354 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.6% during the third quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $672,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Jeppson Wealth Management LLC increased its position in General Dynamics by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 955 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were 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 owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was 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 company insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $256.17 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $264.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $285.57. The company has a market capitalization of $70.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $247.01 and a 1-year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is 41.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GD. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $298.59.

General Dynamics Profile

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.