Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Lowers Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lowered its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 136,647 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,010 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $36,005,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 241.7% during the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $279.00 to $276.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 target price (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $298.59.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $241.98 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $262.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $284.58. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $239.87 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 41.64%.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.