Barclays Cuts General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Price Target to $285.00

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) had its target price lowered by Barclays from $305.00 to $285.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Baird R W cut General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded 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, eleven have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $300.06.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $255.41 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $70.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s 50 day moving average is $265.60 and its 200-day moving average is $286.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics has a 1-year low of $247.01 and a 1-year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Equities research analysts predict that General Dynamics will post 14.88 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.64%.

General Dynamics declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Dynamics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GD. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 3,571 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $941,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $182,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $197,238,000. Finally, First Business Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 53.3% during the 4th quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. now owns 9,574 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,523,000 after buying an additional 3,330 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% 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.