Keb Asset Management LLC Sells 136 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Keb Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 14.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 801 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 136 shares during the quarter. Keb Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $211,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GD. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in General Dynamics by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,689 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,553,000 after purchasing an additional 1,283 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 67.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,546 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,583,000 after buying an additional 3,448 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $607,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 10.0% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 37,074 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $11,204,000 after buying an additional 3,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hickory Point Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $692,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE GD opened at $271.82 on Monday. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $239.87 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $257.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $279.78. The stock has a market cap of $73.49 billion, a PE ratio of 19.93, a PEG 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 announced 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GD. Baird R W downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wolfe Research downgraded General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. BTIG Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered 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. One 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were 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 owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.52% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About General Dynamics

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.