2,547 Shares in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Purchased by AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC

AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC 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 SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,547 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $671,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 15.3% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,689 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,553,000 after acquiring an additional 1,283 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $607,000. Hickory Point Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $692,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 69.1% during 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 during the period. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $550,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GD. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. William Blair cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $244.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.71.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $269.60 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $72.89 billion, a PE ratio of 19.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $239.87 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $258.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $277.17. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Equities research analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 43.99%.

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.