Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC Lowers Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC cut its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,477 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 306 shares during the quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,443,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were 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 $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD opened at $249.94 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $258.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $275.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $239.87 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The stock has a market cap of $67.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.32, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) 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, analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on GD. Baird R W cut General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on General Dynamics from $244.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $298.59.

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.