Kentucky Retirement Systems Cuts Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lessened its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 4.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,242 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 881 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in General Dynamics were worth $4,871,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Eudaimonia Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $240,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 188.3% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 40,830 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $10,602,000 after purchasing an additional 26,668 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 99.3% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 29,045 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,542,000 after purchasing an additional 14,468 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,056,000. Finally, Gladstone Capital Management LLP bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,869,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $330.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $324.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $280.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Argus increased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $311.33.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE GD traded down $0.58 during trading on Friday, hitting $290.40. The stock had a trading volume of 1,079,838 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,187,075. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.60. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $214.53 and a one year high of $302.75. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $292.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $282.38.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.30 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $11.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.46 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 7.89%. The business’s revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.33%.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Leon Rudy F. De sold 2,570 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.00, for a total transaction of $740,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,589,184. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Kimberly A. Kuryea sold 13,344 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.16, for a total transaction of $3,978,647.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 79,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,630,670.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Leon Rudy F. De sold 2,570 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.00, for a total transaction of $740,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,518 shares in the company, valued at $1,589,184. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 68,636 shares of company stock valued at $20,209,317. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.