Sanctuary Advisors LLC Reduces Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lowered its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 43.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,094 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 41,717 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $13,898,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in General Dynamics by 40,389.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,379,472 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $416,876,000 after buying an additional 1,376,065 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake 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 worth $3,307,612,000 after acquiring an additional 943,247 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics by 13.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,557,404 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,674,998,000 after acquiring an additional 638,342 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 117.0% during 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 boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 43.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 942,485 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $284,818,000 after purchasing an additional 283,972 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.52% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock traded down $3.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $243.02. 1,947,405 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,735,765. General Dynamics Co. has a 52-week low of $239.87 and a 52-week high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.82, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $260.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $282.84.

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 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. General Dynamics's payout ratio is 41.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on GD. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Cowen dropped their target price 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 report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $298.59.

General Dynamics 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.