Rodgers Brothers Inc. Grows Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Rodgers Brothers Inc. increased its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 125.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,116 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 10,645 shares during the quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc.'s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $5,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. William Blair downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $300.00 price target (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $283.00 price objective (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on General Dynamics from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $298.59.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

General Dynamics Trading Down 5.1 %

GD traded down $13.78 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $255.84. 788,033 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,314,105. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $259.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $276.14. General Dynamics Co. has a 52-week low of $239.87 and a 52-week high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.66 billion, a PE ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. As a group, 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. This is a boost from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is 43.99%.

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.