General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Acquired by FFG Partners LLC

FFG Partners LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,348 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the period. General Dynamics accounts for 1.9% of FFG Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. FFG Partners LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $5,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GD. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 67.6% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,546 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,583,000 after buying an additional 3,448 shares during the period. Olstein Capital Management L.P. boosted its position in General Dynamics by 36.4% during the 3rd quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 15,000 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,533,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 37,074 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $11,204,000 after purchasing an additional 3,363 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted 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 worth $69,032,000 after purchasing an additional 107,095 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lummis Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 32.6% during the third quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 10,368 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,133,000 after purchasing an additional 2,551 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE GD opened at $255.41 on Friday. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $247.01 and a twelve month high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $70.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.72, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $265.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $286.09.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.88 EPS for the current year.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 41.64%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of 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. cut their price objective on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Baird R W lowered General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Vertical Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $300.06.

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.