Horizon Investment Services LLC Invests $2.69 Million in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Horizon Investment Services LLC opened a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter, buying 7,980 shares worth about $2.69 million.
• Several analysts turned more positive on the stock, with upgrades from firms including Jefferies, UBS, and Argus; the consensus rating is now Moderate Buy with an average price target of $388.40.
• General Dynamics reported strong quarterly results, beating earnings and revenue expectations, and also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per share, payable August 7.

Horizon Investment Services LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,980 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $2,687,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 620.0% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 72 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Dagco Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 650.0% in the 3rd quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 75 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Steph & Co. raised its stake in General Dynamics by 65.2% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on GD. Argus raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $380.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $387.00 to $377.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $388.40.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.3%

General Dynamics stock opened at $359.92 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $97.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.90. General Dynamics Corporation has a 1 year low of $275.49 and a 1 year high of $369.70. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $340.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $346.59.

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

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.59 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $6.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.03%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total transaction of $12,596,179.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 38,975 shares in the company, valued at $13,457,677.75. This trade represents a 48.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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