General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Whittier Trust Co.

Whittier Trust Co. reduced its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,856 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 132 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,860,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,689 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,553,000 after buying an additional 1,283 shares during the period. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $607,000. Hickory Point Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $692,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 69.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 261,992 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $69,032,000 after purchasing an additional 107,095 shares during the period. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $550,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Baird R W downgraded General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.71.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, 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. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $263.30 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $239.87 and a one year high of $316.90. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $277.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.99%.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.