General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Receives $314.88 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nineteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $314.88.

GD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $283.00 to $245.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $322.00 to $295.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 241.7% in the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of General Dynamics by 385.2% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:GD opened at $266.14 on Thursday. General Dynamics has a one year low of $247.36 and a one year high of $316.90. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $284.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $291.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.27, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that General Dynamics will post 13.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.26%.

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.