Pzena Investment Management LLC Sells 185,976 Shares of General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Pzena Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) by 63.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 107,467 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 185,976 shares during the quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $36,885,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 650.0% during the third quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 75 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 65.2% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 220.7% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 93 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GD shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a report on Thursday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $385.00 price objective on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $388.40.

General Dynamics Trading Up 2.5%

NYSE:GD opened at $363.11 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $342.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $347.92. The stock has a market cap of $98.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12 month low of $290.30 and a 12 month high of $369.70.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The company had revenue of $13.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.66 earnings per share. General Dynamics’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.63 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a $1.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $6.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total value of $2,000,200.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,884,695. This represents a 33.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total value of $12,596,179.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,457,677.75. This represents a 48.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 78,190 shares of company stock worth $27,041,022. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Company Profile

General Dynamics is a major American aerospace and defense contractor that designs, manufactures and supports a broad range of products and services for government and commercial customers worldwide. Headquartered in the United States (Reston, Virginia), the company supplies platforms and systems used by armed forces, civil authorities and private operators across multiple domains including air, land, sea and cyber.

Its principal activities span several operating businesses: a business aviation unit that develops and supports Gulfstream business jets; land systems that produce armored combat vehicles and related logistics and sustainment services; marine systems that design and construct submarines and surface ships for navies; and mission systems and information technology operations that provide command-and-control, communications, cybersecurity and systems-integration services.