RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 836 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $276.14 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a 50-day moving average of $259.05 and a 200 day moving average of $276.19. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $239.87 and a 12-month high of $316.90. The stock has a market cap of $74.65 billion, a PE ratio of 20.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GD. Baird R W lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. 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. Vertical Research cut General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $298.59.

General Dynamics Company 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.