National Pension Service Has $152.75 Million Stock Position in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)

Key Points

• The National Pension Service increased its stake in General Dynamics Corporation by 11.2%, acquiring an additional 56,370 shares, bringing its total holdings to 560,392 shares valued at approximately $152.75 million.
• General Dynamics reported a quarterly EPS of $3.74, exceeding analysts' expectations of $3.47, with revenues reaching $13.04 billion during the quarter.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, representing an annual dividend yield of 1.9% with a payout ratio of 40.27%.

National Pension Service grew its stake in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 11.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 560,392 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 56,370 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.21% of General Dynamics worth $152,752,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rialto Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in General Dynamics by 213.8% during the 1st quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 91 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Copia Wealth Management acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In related news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 43,860 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.28, for a total transaction of $13,696,600.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,452,165. This represents a 52.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Leon Rudy F. De sold 5,490 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.81, for a total transaction of $1,717,326.90. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,483 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,715,137.23. This represents a 50.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 302,110 shares of company stock worth $89,042,859. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of GD stock traded down $2.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $313.70. 900,532 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,224,887. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12-month low of $239.20 and a 12-month high of $322.50. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $298.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $277.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.48.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.27. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.13% and a return on equity of 17.99%. The company had revenue of $13.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.13 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.26 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that General Dynamics Corporation will post 14.83 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. General Dynamics's payout ratio is presently 40.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on GD shares. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. TD Cowen upped their price target on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Susquehanna upped their price target on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on General Dynamics from $348.00 to $368.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on General Dynamics from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $315.78.

General Dynamics Company 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.