Martin Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Martin Investment Management LLC cut its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 14.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 23,520 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,942 shares during the period. General Dynamics accounts for 1.7% of Martin Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Martin Investment Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $6,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GD. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $360.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. William Blair lowered General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $283.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $297.71.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of GD opened at $273.93 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.06 billion, a PE ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. The company’s fifty day moving average is $258.90 and its 200 day moving average is $276.19. 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 Co. has a fifty-two week low of $239.87 and a fifty-two week high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 43.99%.

General Dynamics 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.