Naples Global Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Naples Global Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 12.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,248 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GD. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 46,948 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $14,188,000 after purchasing an additional 1,906 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,775 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,745,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 6,808 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,057,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Marshall Financial Group LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth $582,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 7,101 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,146,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Vertical Research downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $298.59.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

General Dynamics stock opened at $241.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $239.87 and a 1-year high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s 50-day moving average is $262.55 and its 200 day moving average is $284.58.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.64%.

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

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Corporate insiders own 1.52% 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.