General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Position Lowered by Newport Trust Company LLC

Newport Trust Company LLC decreased its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 1.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,462,857 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 163,165 shares during the quarter. General Dynamics comprises about 11.3% of Newport Trust Company LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Newport Trust Company LLC owned approximately 5.64% of General Dynamics worth $4,486,393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the second quarter worth about $29,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GD traded up $2.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $306.87. The company had a trading volume of 7,869,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,103,088. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $294.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $290.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $214.53 and a fifty-two week high of $309.97.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.30 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $11.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.52 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 11th will be paid a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 11th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GD shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of General Dynamics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $293.00 to $345.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on General Dynamics from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $315.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.