Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Reduces Position in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,613 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,895 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $22,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Hickory Point Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $692,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 45.4% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 80,565 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $21,228,000 after purchasing an additional 25,144 shares in the last quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. raised its stake in General Dynamics by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. now owns 79,450 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $20,934,000 after buying an additional 12,453 shares during the period. Renasant Bank lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 46.8% in the 4th quarter. Renasant Bank now owns 3,258 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $858,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in General Dynamics by 990.0% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 66,557 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $17,537,000 after purchasing an additional 60,451 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.4%

GD traded down $1.02 on Tuesday, hitting $281.30. 1,125,002 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,388,869. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $275.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $266.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.50 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.46. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12 month low of $239.20 and a 12 month high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.43 by $0.23. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 17.82%. The firm had revenue of $12.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.88 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics Corporation will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 178,821 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.13, for a total transaction of $50,629,589.73. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 769,607 shares in the company, valued at $217,898,829.91. This represents a 18.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $261.00 to $236.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. TD Securities increased their price target on General Dynamics from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Argus set a $295.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $268.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $293.00.

General Dynamics Company Profile

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.