Strategic Blueprint LLC Reduces Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Strategic Blueprint LLC lessened its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 13,242 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 146 shares during the quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $3,489,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 241.7% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 1.6 %

General Dynamics stock opened at $258.36 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $268.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $287.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $257.26 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. Research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.66 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is 43.26%.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on GD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Barclays lowered their price objective on General Dynamics from $330.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $330.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $303.28.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’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 directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

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.