Mutual Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,638 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 574 shares during the quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $34,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $268.07 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $73.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $270.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $287.88. General Dynamics Co. has a 1 year low of $251.62 and a 1 year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its 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 return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The firm had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.71 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

Insider Activity

In other General Dynamics news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen raised shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Vertical Research cut shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $330.00 to $290.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Baird R W lowered General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $283.00 to $245.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.88.

About General Dynamics

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.