Congress Wealth Management LLC DE Has $7.61 Million Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 148.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,872 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,257 shares during the quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $7,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in GD. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD opened at $267.61 on Wednesday. General Dynamics Co. has a 52 week low of $239.87 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $258.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $277.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,297,195.12. This represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $244.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Vertical Research cut shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. BTIG Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $297.71.

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.