General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Reaches New 12-Month Low - Here's Why

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $244.22 and last traded at $245.03, with a volume of 1596119 shares. The stock had previously closed at $251.33.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GD has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wolfe Research cut shares of General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $298.59.

General Dynamics Stock Down 1.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of $66.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. 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 firm's fifty day moving average is $261.96 and its 200-day moving average is $284.09.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics's payout ratio is 41.64%.

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

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GD. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 2.3% in the third quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,482 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $448,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners lifted its position in General Dynamics by 22.8% during the third quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 178 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 1.6% during the third quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $672,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 3.8% during the third quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 955 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Community Bank N.A. lifted its position in General Dynamics by 0.6% during the third quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 5,461 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,650,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% 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.