Barclays PLC Sells 362,844 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Barclays PLC lessened its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 38.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 579,641 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 362,844 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned 0.21% of General Dynamics worth $152,729,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE:GD traded down $0.93 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $275.70. The stock had a trading volume of 1,721,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,361,597. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $239.20 and a 12-month 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 simple moving average of $261.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $272.70. The stock has a market cap of $73.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted 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 return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. On average, research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This is a positive change from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics's payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GD shares. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $335.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $261.00 to $236.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $294.47.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was 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 owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Company insiders own 1.50% 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.