General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Given “Hold” Rating at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reiterated their hold rating on shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $300.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock, down from their previous price target of $345.00.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on GD. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $322.00 to $295.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays raised their target price on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $283.00 to $245.00 in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $317.38.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $263.04 on Thursday. General Dynamics has a one year low of $247.36 and a one year high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $292.58 and its 200 day moving average is $293.98. The firm has a market cap of $72.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.03, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

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

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan 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. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total value of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 26.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. The trade was 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

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 241.7% during 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 last quarter. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter worth about $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 120.0% during 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 last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.