4,786 Shares in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Purchased by AGP Franklin LLC

AGP Franklin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 4,786 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,261,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of GD. Barclays PLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 43.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 942,485 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $284,818,000 after acquiring an additional 283,972 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $393,000. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 4.0% during the third quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 9,078 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,743,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,892,000. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $20,667,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The sale 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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $278.84 on Tuesday. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $239.20 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $259.89 and a 200 day moving average of $273.43. The firm has a market cap of $74.84 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. On average, research analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GD has been the subject of several research reports. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $261.00 to $236.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.82.

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.