O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Buys 718 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 58,787 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 718 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $15,490,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. United Bank lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 5,776 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,746,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in General Dynamics by 7.5% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 57,899 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $17,497,000 after acquiring an additional 4,024 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 666,544 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $201,430,000 after purchasing an additional 29,223 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in shares of General Dynamics by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 38,004 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $11,485,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 213,652 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $64,566,000 after purchasing an additional 10,600 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $268.99 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $258.73 and its 200 day moving average is $276.60. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $239.87 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The company has a market capitalization of $72.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. 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 (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.99%.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wolfe Research cut General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Vertical Research lowered General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Baird R W downgraded General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $297.71.

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.