Prudential Financial Inc. Sells 222,715 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Prudential Financial Inc. trimmed its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 59.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 149,816 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 222,715 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.05% of General Dynamics worth $39,475,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Interchange Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of General Dynamics by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 819 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $215,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,491 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,237,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 148.6% in the 4th quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 28,872 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,607,000 after purchasing an additional 17,257 shares during the last quarter. Twin City Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Twin City Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,460 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at $589,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $267.61 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $72.35 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $239.87 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $258.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $277.27.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued 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 net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. Equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program 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. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Baird R W lowered General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,297,195.12. This trade 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 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.