Anchor Investment Management LLC Sells 1,072 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Anchor Investment Management LLC decreased its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,963 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,072 shares during the quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,044,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 43.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 942,485 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $284,818,000 after purchasing an additional 283,972 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at approximately $393,000. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 9,078 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,743,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth $3,892,000. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $20,667,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.8 %

GD traded down $2.21 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $273.87. 256,213 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,357,367. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $73.50 billion, a PE ratio of 20.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $261.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $272.70. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $239.20 and a one year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. This is a boost from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics's payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,195.12. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Vertical Research cut shares of General Dynamics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $294.47.

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.