General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $314.88.

A number of research firms have recently commented on GD. Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of 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 raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn downgraded General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE GD opened at $263.38 on Thursday. General Dynamics has a 1 year low of $247.36 and a 1 year high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59. 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 firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $283.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $291.22.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly 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). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. The business had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.04 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that General Dynamics will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

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 given a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.26%.

General Dynamics announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coston McIsaac & Partners increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 22.8% during the third quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its stake in General Dynamics by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,482 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $448,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 10.6% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 354 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 1.6% in the third quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $672,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 0.4% during the second quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,120 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,356,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.