Public Sector Pension Investment Board Raises Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 11.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,455 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 6,400 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $19,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in General Dynamics by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 57,899 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $17,497,000 after acquiring an additional 4,024 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in General Dynamics by 9.5% in the third quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 67,322 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $20,345,000 after purchasing an additional 5,859 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $5,470,000. Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in General Dynamics by 0.9% during the third quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,344 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,313,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 39,872 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $12,049,000 after buying an additional 1,339 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GD shares. TD Cowen upgraded General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley upgraded General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $317.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.69.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $282.31 on Thursday. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $243.87 and a twelve month high of $316.90. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $299.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $295.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.04 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $5,701,349.36. This trade 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 available through this link. Also, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. This represents a 26.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

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.