Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Raises Stock Holdings in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) by 90.6% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 11,924 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 5,669 shares during the quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $4,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GD. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in General Dynamics by 620.0% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 72 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 650.0% in the third quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 75 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. increased its stake in General Dynamics by 65.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $350.39 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market cap of $94.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.05, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $341.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $347.20. General Dynamics Corporation has a 52-week low of $275.49 and a 52-week high of $369.70.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $13.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.70 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 17.41%. General Dynamics’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.66 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total value of $12,596,179.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 38,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,457,677.75. This trade represents a 48.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $385.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $388.40.

About General Dynamics

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.