Independence Bank of Kentucky Grows Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Independence Bank of Kentucky lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 29.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,832 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,018 shares during the quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $26,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

General Dynamics stock opened at $257.17 on Friday. General Dynamics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $247.01 and a fifty-two week high of $316.90. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $267.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $286.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market cap of $70.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 7.93%. As a group, analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 2.21%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 41.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on GD. Baird R W downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Seaport Res Ptn lowered General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $301.24.

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.