General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Gateway Investment Advisers LLC

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC cut its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,640 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 102 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $696,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GD. Coston McIsaac & Partners boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 2.3% in the third quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,482 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $448,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in General Dynamics by 10.6% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 354 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in General Dynamics by 1.6% during the third quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $672,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jeppson Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 955 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $266.86 on Friday. 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 has a market capitalization of $73.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a 50-day moving average of $272.86 and a 200 day moving average of $288.17. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $247.36 and a 12 month high of $316.90.

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 the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.04 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.81 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on General Dynamics from $295.00 to $279.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $330.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.53.

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.