Financial Partners Group LLC Boosts Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Financial Partners Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 42.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,226 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 1,554 shares during the period. Financial Partners Group LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,377,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GD shares. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $330.00 to $315.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $295.00 to $279.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research lowered General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.88.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.3 %

General Dynamics stock opened at $268.07 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $270.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $287.88. General Dynamics Co. has a 52-week low of $251.62 and a 52-week high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.42, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The business had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.04 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.66 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

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.