General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Acquired by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,351 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 725 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,169,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Operose Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total value of $3,914,215.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares in the company, valued at $29,816,065.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 49,850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.50, for a total value of $14,182,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 768,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $218,773,956.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 103,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,816,065.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $288.14 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $282.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $263.37. The company has a market cap of $79.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.50, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.67. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $202.35 and a 12 month high of $296.50.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $10.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.26 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.64 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be paid a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GD. Jefferies Financial Group raised General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $305.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on General Dynamics from $301.00 to $333.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on General Dynamics from $253.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $300.53.

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.