Loudon Investment Management LLC Reduces Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Loudon Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,058 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Loudon Investment Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. United Bank boosted its position in General Dynamics by 4.0% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 5,776 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,746,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in General Dynamics by 6.8% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 31,162 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $9,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,971 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its position in General Dynamics by 2.2% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 12,392 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,750,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $197,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $3,039,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $265.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. General Dynamics Co. has a 1 year low of $239.87 and a 1 year high of $316.90. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $258.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $278.16. The company has a market cap of $71.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.47, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GD has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays dropped their target price on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on General Dynamics from $360.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Baird R W cut General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective 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. Finally, William Blair cut General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $297.71.

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.