Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC Buys 725 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 8.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,469 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 725 shares during the quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% during the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $254.84 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $264.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $285.62. General Dynamics Co. has a 1 year low of $247.01 and a 1 year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 41.64%.

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 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on GD shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Baird R W downgraded General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $300.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of General Dynamics 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 directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 owned by corporate insiders.

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.