Cullen Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Cullen Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 741,965 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 19,254 shares during the period. General Dynamics makes up approximately 2.2% of Cullen Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Cullen Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.27% of General Dynamics worth $195,500,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD opened at $249.94 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $258.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $275.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $239.87 and a twelve month high of $316.90. The company has a market cap of $67.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. As a group, analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is 43.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GD. Wolfe Research downgraded General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. 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 report on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed 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. TD Cowen lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, BTIG Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $298.59.

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.