General Dynamics Corporation $GD Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its stake in General Dynamics by 1.0% in the first quarter, holding 310,063 shares worth about $106.4 million after the purchase.
• General Dynamics reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.10 beating estimates of $3.67 and revenue of $13.48 billion topping forecasts; revenue also rose 10.3% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per share, or $6.36 annualized, implying a 1.7% yield and a payout ratio of 40.03%.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 1.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 310,063 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 3,135 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of General Dynamics worth $106,420,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Dagco Inc. acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 1,725.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in General Dynamics by 650.0% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. raised its stake 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 in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other General Dynamics news, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $2,000,200.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,884,695. The trade was a 33.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total transaction of $12,596,179.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 38,975 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,457,677.75. This represents a 48.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 78,190 shares of company stock worth $27,041,022. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Down 1.1%

GD opened at $365.53 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $351.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $350.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market cap of $98.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.34. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12 month low of $293.95 and a 12 month high of $380.71.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last announced 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. The company had revenue of $13.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.70 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 8.07%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.64 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a $1.59 dividend. This represents a $6.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GD has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $380.00 to $364.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $391.15.

About General Dynamics

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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