Allstate Corp Purchases 9,122 Shares of General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Allstate Corp more than doubled its stake in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter, buying 9,122 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 17,323 shares valued at about $5.83 million.
• General Dynamics posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.10 versus $3.67 expected and revenue of $13.48 billion, up 10.3% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.59 per share from $1.50, while analysts currently maintain a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $387.40 price target.

Allstate Corp lifted its position in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 111.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,323 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,122 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $5,832,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,885 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 417 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 140.2% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,445 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,011 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $240,000. Flow Traders U.S. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $352,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,284,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD stock opened at $345.02 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $341.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $346.52. The company has a market cap of $93.30 billion, a PE ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12-month low of $268.10 and a 12-month high of $369.70.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 8.07%.The business had revenue of $13.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.66 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th were given a $1.59 dividend. This represents a $6.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 10th. This is a positive change from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. General Dynamics's payout ratio is currently 40.03%.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, EVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 3,819 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.50, for a total transaction of $1,350,016.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,825,134.50. This trade represents a 7.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,918 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.09, for a total value of $11,655,934.62. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 766,457 shares in the company, valued at $271,394,759.13. This represents a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 119,600 shares of company stock valued at $41,650,580 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GD. UBS Group lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $385.00 to $371.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $385.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on General Dynamics from $385.00 to $380.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $387.40.

General Dynamics Company Profile

General Dynamics is a major American aerospace and defense contractor that designs, manufactures and supports a broad range of products and services for government and commercial customers worldwide. Headquartered in the United States (Reston, Virginia), the company supplies platforms and systems used by armed forces, civil authorities and private operators across multiple domains including air, land, sea and cyber.

Its principal activities span several operating businesses: a business aviation unit that develops and supports Gulfstream business jets; land systems that produce armored combat vehicles and related logistics and sustainment services; marine systems that design and construct submarines and surface ships for navies; and mission systems and information technology operations that provide command-and-control, communications, cybersecurity and systems-integration services.

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