Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 155,819 Shares of General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Lazard Asset Management cut its General Dynamics stake by 37.2%, selling 155,819 shares during the first quarter and retaining 263,168 shares valued at approximately $90.3 million.
• General Dynamics reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $4.10 per share and revenue of $13.48 billion, exceeding analyst estimates and marking 10.3% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per share, equal to an annualized $6.36 dividend and a 1.6% yield; analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $391.15.

Lazard Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 37.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 263,168 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 155,819 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.10% of General Dynamics worth $90,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,767,330 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $8,338,169,000 after buying an additional 528,769 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,323,170 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,812,058,000 after acquiring an additional 294,456 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in General Dynamics by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,065,462 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,039,742,000 after acquiring an additional 195,604 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in General Dynamics by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,307,389 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,786,786,000 after acquiring an additional 114,647 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,443,453 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,159,273,000 after acquiring an additional 110,536 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $389.22 on Tuesday. General Dynamics Corporation has a 1 year low of $306.03 and a 1 year high of $392.57. The firm's 50-day moving average is $357.11 and its 200-day moving average is $351.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.34.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The business had revenue of $13.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.66 earnings per share. General Dynamics's revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.66 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.59 per share. This represents a $6.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. General Dynamics's payout ratio is currently 40.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of General Dynamics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on General Dynamics from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group upgraded General Dynamics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $391.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total value of $2,000,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,643 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,884,695. This represents a 33.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total value of $12,596,179.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 38,975 shares in the company, valued at $13,457,677.75. This represents a 48.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 78,190 shares of company stock valued at $27,041,022 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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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