Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. Makes New Investment in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $174,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 241.7% during the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the third quarter worth $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $254.84 on Monday. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $247.01 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $264.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $285.56. The company has a market capitalization of $70.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 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.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $279.00 to $276.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $283.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $300.06.

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.