Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 20,022 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 1.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,773,670 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 20,022 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.65% of General Dynamics worth $535,400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Coston McIsaac & Partners increased its position 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 in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 2.3% during 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 lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 354 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $107,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its position in General Dynamics by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,120 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,356,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $406,626.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 26.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $263.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $72.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $291.83 and its 200 day moving average is $293.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $247.36 and a one year high of $316.90.

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

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen raised shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.38.

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.