New York State Common Retirement Fund Cuts Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

New York State Common Retirement Fund lowered its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 466,120 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 24,833 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $121,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,022 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,993,000 after acquiring an additional 1,144 shares during the period. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 411.5% in the 3rd quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 133 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth about $213,000. Perennial Advisors LLC raised its stake in General Dynamics by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Perennial Advisors LLC now owns 22,296 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,927,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 6.0% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 19,668 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,112 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total value of $19,414,117.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 149,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,502,023.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.31, for a total value of $8,551,750.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 773,977 shares in the company, valued at $204,569,860.87. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total transaction of $19,414,117.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 149,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,502,023.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE GD traded up $2.68 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $293.99. The stock had a trading volume of 252,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,055,948. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $202.35 and a 12 month high of $296.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $279.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $260.57. The company has a market capitalization of $80.66 billion, a PE ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.68.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.68 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 16.61%. The company had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on GD shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays raised their target price on General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on General Dynamics from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $301.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $296.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, General Dynamics has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.80.

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.