Nixon Peabody Trust Co. Has $14.78 Million Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. increased its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,097 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. General Dynamics makes up about 1.2% of Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $14,781,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

GD stock opened at $252.87 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $68.36 billion, a PE ratio of 18.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business has a 50 day moving average of $258.31 and a 200-day moving average of $281.17. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $239.87 and a 12-month high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 41.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GD. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $276.00 to $244.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.71.

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.