Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Buys 4,890 Shares of General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management increased its General Dynamics stake by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 4,890 shares and bringing its total to 45,827 shares worth about $15.4 million.
• General Dynamics reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.10 versus estimates of $3.67 and revenue of $13.48 billion versus expectations of $12.70 billion, while revenue rose 10.3% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.59 per share from $1.50, and analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $387.40.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,827 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,890 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $15,428,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 118.3% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,663,847 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $567,372,000 after acquiring an additional 901,679 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 35.0% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,332,917 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,136,525,000 after purchasing an additional 863,392 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 2.9% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,238,561 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $8,265,349,000 after purchasing an additional 677,665 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 831.1% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 737,259 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $251,405,000 after purchasing an additional 658,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 6,680.8% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 591,488 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $199,130,000 after purchasing an additional 582,765 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:GD opened at $346.47 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $340.85 and a 200 day moving average of $346.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.34. General Dynamics Corporation has a 52 week low of $268.10 and a 52 week high of $369.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. The business had revenue of $13.48 billion during 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th were issued a $1.59 dividend. This is an increase from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 10th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is 40.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Dynamics news, EVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 3,819 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.50, for a total value of $1,350,016.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,825,134.50. This trade represents a 7.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $12,596,179.20. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 119,600 shares of company stock valued at $41,650,580. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on GD shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $385.00 price objective on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $385.00 to $380.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $387.40.

General Dynamics 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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