Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC Acquires 382 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,021 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,083,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 411.5% in the third quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 133 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

GD traded up $1.20 on Tuesday, reaching $292.51. The stock had a trading volume of 628,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,060,334. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $202.35 and a 12-month high of $296.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $279.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $260.57. The company has a market cap of $80.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.68.

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

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a $1.42 dividend. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on GD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $253.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $301.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total value of $19,414,117.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 149,205 shares in the company, valued at $39,502,023.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other General Dynamics news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.31, for a total value of $8,551,750.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 773,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $204,569,860.87. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark C. Roualet sold 73,330 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.75, for a total transaction of $19,414,117.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 149,205 shares in the company, valued at $39,502,023.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% 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.