Herbst Group LLC Trims Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Herbst Group LLC cut its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,508 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 296 shares during the quarter. General Dynamics comprises 1.9% of Herbst Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Herbst Group LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $3,032,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 241.7% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners increased its position in shares of General Dynamics by 22.8% in the third quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $266.86 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $272.86 and a 200 day moving average of $288.17. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $247.36 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The company has a market cap of $73.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 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 company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.81 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the sale, 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 can be accessed through this link. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on GD. Wolfe Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.53.

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.