General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $239.20 and last traded at $240.56, with a volume of 133127 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $250.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on GD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Vertical Research downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $298.59.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $66.29 billion, a PE ratio of 18.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $258.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $275.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. On average, research analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, 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 transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction 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 $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 owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Dynamics

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 34,578.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,244,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $339,253,000 after acquiring an additional 1,241,011 shares during the last quarter. Exeter Financial LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Exeter Financial LLC now owns 17,803 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,853,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 64.0% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 374 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 554.9% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,670 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 145.9% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 29,799 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,123,000 after purchasing an additional 17,683 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.