AQR Capital Management LLC Boosts Position in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management increased its stake in General Dynamics Corporation by 17.0%, now owning 532,816 shares valued at approximately $145.2 million.
• CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 178,821 shares of General Dynamics stock, resulting in an 18.85% decrease in her position, with a total transaction value of around $50.6 million.
• General Dynamics has set a 2025 earnings guidance of $15.050 to $15.150 EPS, following a quarterly earnings report that surpassed analysts' expectations.

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 17.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 532,816 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 77,356 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.20% of General Dynamics worth $145,235,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GD. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in General Dynamics by 0.5% during the first quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 8,203 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,161,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Sharpepoint LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 4.2% during the first quarter. Sharpepoint LLC now owns 917 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $249,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 1.2% during the first quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 3,140 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $856,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 1858 Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 1.2% during the first quarter. 1858 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,224 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $879,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Financial Services lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 1.6% during the first quarter. Keystone Financial Services now owns 2,421 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $660,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, VP William A. Moss sold 17,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.40, for a total transaction of $5,600,280.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 16,627 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,260,782.80. This trade represents a 51.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 8,150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.18, for a total transaction of $2,617,617.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 22,818 shares in the company, valued at $7,328,685.24. The trade was a 26.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 458,260 shares of company stock worth $138,125,545. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $322.79. The company had a trading volume of 810,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,398,716. The stock has a market cap of $86.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $310.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $284.78. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12-month low of $239.20 and a 12-month high of $326.02.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.27. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.13% and a return on equity of 17.99%. The company had revenue of $13.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.26 EPS. General Dynamics's quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. General Dynamics has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.050-15.150 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that General Dynamics Corporation will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $314.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $325.00 price objective on shares of General Dynamics and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $315.78.

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.