General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Blair William & Co. IL

Blair William & Co. IL lessened its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 318,274 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 33,283 shares during the quarter. Blair William & Co. IL owned 0.12% of General Dynamics worth $83,862,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 15.3% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,689 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,553,000 after acquiring an additional 1,283 shares during the period. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $607,000. Hickory Point Bank & Trust purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $692,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics by 69.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 261,992 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $69,032,000 after buying an additional 107,095 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $550,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $269.60 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $277.22. The company has a market cap of $72.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.77, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $239.87 and a one year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 EPS 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Vertical Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $297.71.

General Dynamics Company 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.