Jefferies Financial Group Reaffirms “Hold” Rating for General Dynamics (NYSE:GD)

Jefferies Financial Group reissued their hold rating on shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $300.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock, down from their previous price target of $345.00.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research downgraded General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $317.38.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE GD opened at $263.04 on Thursday. General Dynamics has a 1-year low of $247.36 and a 1-year high of $316.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $292.58 and a 200-day moving average of $293.98. The firm has a market cap of $72.33 billion, a PE ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.04 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that General Dynamics will post 13.87 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.26%.

General Dynamics declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. This represents a 26.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % 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 insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Dynamics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 120.0% in the 2nd quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.