Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Buys 6,313 Shares of General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings increased its stake in General Dynamics by 17% in the fourth quarter, buying 6,313 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 43,403 shares worth about $14.6 million.
• General Dynamics reported better-than-expected first-quarter results, with EPS of $4.10 versus the $3.67 consensus and revenue of $13.48 billion, up 10.3% from a year earlier.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.59 per share from $1.50, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with an average price target of $388.20.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 17.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,403 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 6,313 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $14,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 620.0% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 72 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 650.0% during the third quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 75 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Steph & Co. lifted its position in General Dynamics by 65.2% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on GD shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $385.00 price objective on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $400.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Citigroup lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $389.00 to $380.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $388.20.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE GD opened at $346.48 on Friday. General Dynamics Corporation has a 52 week low of $267.39 and a 52 week high of $369.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $345.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $346.69.

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

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $1.59 per share. This is a boost from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 10,153 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.95, for a total transaction of $3,603,807.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,834,176.25. The trade was a 20.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Mark Rayha sold 4,370 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.79, for a total value of $1,524,212.30. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,936 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,767,997.44. This trade represents a 35.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 51,260 shares of company stock valued at $18,133,971. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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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