Saratoga Research & Investment Management Sells 10,764 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Saratoga Research & Investment Management lowered its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 4.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 241,290 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 10,764 shares during the quarter. General Dynamics makes up 3.2% of Saratoga Research & Investment Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Saratoga Research & Investment Management owned about 0.09% of General Dynamics worth $72,918,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 241.7% in the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 120.0% during the 2nd quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE:GD traded down $2.39 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $263.04. The stock had a trading volume of 2,397,220 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,135,543. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.07, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $247.36 and a 1-year high of $316.90. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $293.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $294.20.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. General Dynamics's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.04 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.26%.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 26.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. This represents 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of General Dynamics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays lifted their price objective on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $317.38.

General Dynamics 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.