General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $298.59.

GD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen cut their target price on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed 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. Baird R W downgraded General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE GD opened at $242.46 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $261.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $283.72. General Dynamics has a 1 year low of $239.87 and a 1 year high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the business’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 transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of General Dynamics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.