General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Arvest Bank Trust Division

Arvest Bank Trust Division trimmed its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 9.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,612 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 6,778 shares during the quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $16,234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. William Blair downgraded General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $294.47.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of General Dynamics stock traded up $0.43 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $273.61. The stock had a trading volume of 1,255,652 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,361,723. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $261.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $272.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. General Dynamics Co. has a 1 year low of $239.20 and a 1 year high of $316.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

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

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were 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 directly 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. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

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.