General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA trimmed its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 7,366,929 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 462,733 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 2.68% of General Dynamics worth $1,941,112,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GD. Purus Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Purus Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,660 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $701,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in General Dynamics by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 1,051 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Austin Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Austin Wealth Management LLC now owns 826 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 163 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stokes Family Office LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 10,279 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,708,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,195.12. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD traded down $19.68 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $249.94. 3,232,146 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,325,132. 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. The company has a market cap of $67.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.32, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $258.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $275.54.

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, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics's payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on GD shares. UBS Group reduced 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. TD Cowen cut their price target on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Vertical Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $298.59.

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.