Smith Salley Wealth Management Lowers Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Smith Salley Wealth Management reduced its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 978 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 38 shares during the period. Smith Salley Wealth Management’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GD. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 40,389.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,379,472 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $416,876,000 after acquiring an additional 1,376,065 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 9.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,945,110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,307,612,000 after buying an additional 943,247 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 13.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,557,404 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,674,998,000 after buying an additional 638,342 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 117.0% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 858,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $259,469,000 after buying an additional 463,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 2,189.3% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 374,207 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $108,572,000 after buying an additional 357,861 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

GD opened at $266.86 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $73.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.32, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $247.36 and a 1-year high of $316.90. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $272.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $288.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly 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). The firm had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $295.00 to $279.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $283.00 to $245.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $330.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $283.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $304.53.

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.