General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Stock Rating Lowered by The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) from a neutral rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $245.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock, down from their previous price target of $283.00.

GD has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $322.00 to $295.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $317.38.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $263.11 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $291.83 and its 200-day moving average is $293.70. General Dynamics has a 52-week low of $247.36 and a 52-week high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $72.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59.

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

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 43.26%.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total value of $406,626.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,515.60. This represents a 26.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Dynamics

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 120.0% in the second quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.