Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 29.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,698 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 2,772 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,765,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in General Dynamics by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,945,110 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,307,612,000 after buying an additional 943,247 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $197,238,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,557,404 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,674,998,000 after buying an additional 638,342 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 117.0% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 858,600 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $259,469,000 after acquiring an additional 463,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 43.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 942,485 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $284,818,000 after acquiring an additional 283,972 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company's stock.

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General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD stock traded up $2.53 during trading on Monday, hitting $265.94. The company had a trading volume of 1,023,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,249,611. The stock's 50-day moving average is $258.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $277.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $239.87 and a 52 week high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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 issued a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost 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 of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Insider Activity

In other General Dynamics news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. William Blair lowered shares of General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on General Dynamics from $244.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $297.71.

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.