Sentry Investment Management LLC Cuts Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 7.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,098 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 84 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $319,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GD. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $728,284,000. Verity & Verity LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the first quarter valued at about $179,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in General Dynamics by 3,645.4% during the fourth quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 558,586 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $145,048,000 after acquiring an additional 543,672 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 879.9% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 340,359 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $96,148,000 after purchasing an additional 305,624 shares during the period. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,733,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Monday, July 29th. BTIG Research began coverage on General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $345.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on General Dynamics from $330.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $315.06.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

GD stock opened at $299.47 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $82.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $291.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $289.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $214.53 and a 12-month high of $306.51.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.30 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $11.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.46 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 16.74%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.52 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 11th will be issued a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.33%.

General Dynamics 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.