General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Cut to Sector Perform at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Free Report) from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has $290.00 price objective on the aerospace company's stock, down from their previous price objective of $330.00.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. TD Cowen raised General Dynamics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $322.00 to $295.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $314.88.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.8 %

General Dynamics stock traded down $1.99 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $260.28. The company had a trading volume of 2,169,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,157,870. The stock has a market cap of $71.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.82, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. General Dynamics has a 1 year low of $247.36 and a 1 year high of $316.90. The business has a fifty day moving average of $289.84 and a 200 day moving average of $293.03.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. General Dynamics's revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.04 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.26%.

General Dynamics declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of General Dynamics

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of GD. Catalina Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 18.2% in the second quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 994 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. LRI Investments LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 288.2% in the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 4,018 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,166,000 after purchasing an additional 2,983 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 43.8% during the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 161 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 67.1% during the second quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 117 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.