Cypress Wealth Services LLC Invests $243,000 in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Cypress Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 862 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Eudaimonia Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $240,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 188.3% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 40,830 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $10,602,000 after purchasing an additional 26,668 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 99.3% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 29,045 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,542,000 after purchasing an additional 14,468 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $1,056,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the third quarter worth about $16,077,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.7 %

GD traded down $2.03 during trading on Thursday, hitting $292.50. 773,624 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,044,919. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $294.10 and a 200 day moving average of $277.37. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $209.25 and a 12-month high of $302.75.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.89 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $10.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.26 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.85%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.64 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.55 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on GD. StockNews.com cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $305.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Argus boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $280.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $303.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 49,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.50, for a total transaction of $14,182,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 768,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $218,773,956.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,816,065.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 49,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.50, for a total transaction of $14,182,325.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 768,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $218,773,956.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 118,486 shares of company stock worth $34,391,642. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.