General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Epoch Investment Partners Inc.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. reduced its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 101,196 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 4,681 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $26,664,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD traded down $8.89 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $265.91. The company had a trading volume of 2,245,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,374,933. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $239.20 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $262.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $272.52.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.43 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $12.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.92 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Equities research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This is an increase from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics's payout ratio is currently 43.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GD. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. William Blair downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on General Dynamics from $335.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $294.47.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business'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 directly owns 45,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

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.