Private Advisor Group LLC Increases Stake in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in General Dynamics by 12.4% in the first quarter, buying 2,977 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 26,942 shares worth about $9.25 million.
• General Dynamics reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.10 beating estimates and revenue of $13.48 billion topping expectations. Revenue rose 10.3% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $388.40.

Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 12.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,942 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,977 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $9,247,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Optas LLC grew its position in General Dynamics by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,761 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $604,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 35.4% during the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 5,360 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,840,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 59.9% in the first quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,397 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $4,941,000 after purchasing an additional 5,394 shares during the last quarter. Platform Technology Partners purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 1st quarter worth about $333,000. Finally, Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 10,190 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,497,000 after buying an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:GD opened at $373.34 on Monday. General Dynamics Corporation has a one year low of $292.34 and a one year high of $373.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market cap of $100.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $344.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $348.40.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $13.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.70 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.59 per share. This represents a $6.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In related news, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $2,000,200.00. Following the sale, the director owned 10,643 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,884,695. This trade represents a 33.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were 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 trade represents a 48.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 78,190 shares of company stock worth $27,041,022 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on GD. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $327.00 to $313.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $385.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $430.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $388.40.

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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