Wells Fargo & Company Cuts General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Price Target to $295.00

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) had its price target cut by Wells Fargo & Company from $322.00 to $295.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on GD. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays raised their price target on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen raised shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $317.38.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.1 %

General Dynamics stock opened at $263.18 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $291.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $293.73. General Dynamics has a 52 week low of $247.36 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The stock has a market cap of $72.37 billion, a PE ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

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

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

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

General Dynamics declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total value of $406,626.00. Following the transaction, the director now 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’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 value of $1,556,241.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. 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

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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.

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.