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

Xponance Inc. raised its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,274 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,585 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $8,900,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,830 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,812,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 10,377 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,695,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of General Dynamics by 6.5% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 687 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $152,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of General Dynamics by 2.3% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,846 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT raised its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.6% in the third quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 2,706 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $598,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD stock traded up $2.47 on Friday, reaching $287.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 72,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,055,556. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $202.35 and a 12-month high of $296.50. The company has a market capitalization of $78.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $278.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $259.03.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.68 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.61% and a net margin of 7.84%. The business had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.58 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GD has been the topic of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $253.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $283.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $286.00 to $296.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $296.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.31, for a total transaction of $8,551,750.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 773,977 shares in the company, valued at $204,569,860.87. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total transaction of $19,414,117.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 149,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,502,023.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.31, for a total value of $8,551,750.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 773,977 shares in the company, valued at $204,569,860.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

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.