IFM Investors Pty Ltd Boosts Stake in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 27.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,869 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 5,205 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $7,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Rialto Wealth Management LLC raised its position in General Dynamics by 213.8% in the 1st quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 91 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Copia Wealth Management acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of GD traded up $2.56 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $299.21. The stock had a trading volume of 765,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,394,447. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Corporation has a 52 week low of $239.20 and a 52 week high of $316.90. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $279.72 and a 200 day moving average of $268.57. The company has a market cap of $80.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.46.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.43 by $0.23. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.82% and a net margin of 8.08%. The business had revenue of $12.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.88 earnings per share. General Dynamics's quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics Corporation will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.61%.

Insider Activity

In other General Dynamics news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 7,639 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.44, for a total transaction of $2,142,281.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 769,607 shares in the company, valued at $215,828,587.08. This represents a 0.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GD shares. TD Securities raised their target price on General Dynamics from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group raised their target price on General Dynamics from $268.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna raised their price target on General Dynamics from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $261.00 to $236.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $293.00.

General Dynamics 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.