Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 577 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund trimmed its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 7.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 7,492 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 577 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,116,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 46.8% during the 1st quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 113 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,503 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,299 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $932,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Copperwynd Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC now owns 1,056 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Woodward Diversified Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC now owns 1,727 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

GD stock traded down $0.58 during trading on Friday, reaching $290.40. 1,079,838 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,187,075. The company has a market cap of $79.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.69, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.60. General Dynamics Co. has a 52-week low of $214.53 and a 52-week high of $302.75. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $292.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $282.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.33.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.30 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $11.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.46 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 7.89%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.70 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $305.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $324.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $311.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total value of $3,914,215.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,816,065.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Kimberly A. Kuryea sold 13,344 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.16, for a total transaction of $3,978,647.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 79,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,630,670.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 103,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,816,065.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 68,636 shares of company stock valued at $20,209,317 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

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.