NEOS Investment Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 28.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 2,483 shares during the quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,935,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on GD. Baird R W cut General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $360.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Vertical Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $244.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.71.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $268.99 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $258.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $276.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $72.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $239.87 and a 1-year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share 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%. Analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is 43.99%.

General Dynamics declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at $2,857,224. This trade 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 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.