General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 29.8% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 631,746 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 267,609 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $183,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GD. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on GD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $320.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley raised General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on General Dynamics from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other General Dynamics news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,515.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $300.07 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $296.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $292.00. The firm has a market cap of $82.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $214.53 and a 1-year high of $309.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.30 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $11.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 11th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.33%.

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.