Insider Selling: General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) VP Sells 5,540 Shares of Stock

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $282.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $298.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $295.63. The stock has a market cap of $77.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.50, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.87 and a fifty-two week 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 company 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.04 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of General Dynamics

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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 report on Thursday, October 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, General Dynamics has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.69.

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.