General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Kesler Norman & Wride LLC

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC cut its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 5.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,381 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,365 shares during the period. General Dynamics makes up 1.4% of Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $7,369,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GD. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 2,189.3% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 374,207 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $108,572,000 after purchasing an additional 357,861 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 879.9% in the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 340,359 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $96,148,000 after acquiring an additional 305,624 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 4.0% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,639,758 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,216,599,000 after acquiring an additional 293,316 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 24.2% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,347,247 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $391,119,000 after acquiring an additional 262,164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 174.8% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 384,151 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $111,458,000 after acquiring an additional 244,373 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Dynamics Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of GD stock opened at $297.29 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $81.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.25, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $228.50 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. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $297.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $293.09.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.30 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $11.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.46 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 7.89%. The company’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.70 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.52 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,106,515.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GD. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $345.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $334.00 to $317.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.06.

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.