Ascent Group LLC Sells 495 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Ascent Group LLC decreased its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 6.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,753 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 495 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,343,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% in the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 120.0% in the second quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. This trade represents a 26.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 2.7 %

GD opened at $276.33 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $298.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $295.58. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $247.36 and a 1-year high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its 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). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The business had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on GD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.69.

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.