Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Reduces Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc trimmed its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,942 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 93 shares during the quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $6,996,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,879,000. City Holding Co. lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,087 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,416,000. Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,022 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,993,000 after buying an additional 1,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guidance Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 4,762 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,051,000 after buying an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Alembic Global Advisors cut shares of General Dynamics from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $296.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $283.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.80.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total transaction of $19,414,117.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 149,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,502,023.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,355 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.31, for a total transaction of $8,551,750.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 773,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $204,569,860.87. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total transaction of $19,414,117.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 149,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,502,023.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $292.70 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $280.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $261.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.35, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.68. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $202.35 and a one year high of $296.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.68 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.39 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.61% and a net margin of 7.84%. General Dynamics’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a $1.42 dividend. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.25%.

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.