Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. Sells 87 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. lessened its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,572 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 87 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $3,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 241.7% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 385.2% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Stock Down 2.1 %

GD traded down $5.48 on Monday, hitting $257.89. 1,866,657 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,394,660. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $280.38 and its 200-day moving average is $290.31. The company has a market cap of $70.91 billion, a PE ratio of 19.64, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $247.36 and a 12 month high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The firm had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.04 earnings per share. General Dynamics’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 43.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other General Dynamics news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.52% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on GD shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $290.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Wolfe Research downgraded General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Vertical Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $311.29.

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.