General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 11.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,406 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 940 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 55.9% in the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 711 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $157,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in General Dynamics by 0.9% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 52,722 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $11,650,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 0.7% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 93,570 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $20,655,000 after purchasing an additional 683 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 24,452 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,403,000 after buying an additional 2,632 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 42,147 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,313,000 after acquiring an additional 1,842 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $293.37 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $80.49 billion, a PE ratio of 23.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a 50-day moving average of $283.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $264.48. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $202.35 and a 1-year high of $296.50.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $10.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.26 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.85%. General Dynamics’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 46.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In related news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares in the company, valued at $29,816,065.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 103,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,816,065.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 49,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.50, for a total transaction of $14,182,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 768,977 shares in the company, valued at $218,773,956.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 65,987 shares of company stock worth $18,836,700. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GD has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $301.00 to $333.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $305.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $280.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on General Dynamics from $253.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $300.53.

General Dynamics 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.