Fmr LLC Buys 24,464 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Fmr LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 0.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,940,537 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 24,464 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,493,030,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,356,939 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $407,258,000 after acquiring an additional 19,213 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp grew its position in shares of General Dynamics by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Associated Banc Corp now owns 1,104 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $334,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp grew its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 7,634 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,307,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at $74,000. Finally, DRW Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at $656,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GD shares. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $317.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.69.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 26.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $282.01 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $299.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $295.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $243.87 and a 12-month high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.04 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.