ING Groep NV Has $8.68 Million Stock Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

ING Groep NV trimmed its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,959 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,530 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $8,684,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Financial Perspectives Inc raised its stake in General Dynamics by 195.0% during the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 118 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was 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 approximately $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 1.3 %

General Dynamics stock traded down $3.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $243.02. The stock had a trading volume of 1,947,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,726,838. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $259.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $282.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $239.87 and a 12 month high of $316.90. 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 (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted 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, sell-side analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current year.

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

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business 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 2.34%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. William Blair lowered General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday. Baird R W lowered General Dynamics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $279.00 to $276.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $300.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $298.59.

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.