Savant Capital LLC Lowers Position in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Savant Capital LLC cut its General Dynamics stake by 31.5% in the fourth quarter, reducing holdings to 6,873 shares worth about $2.31 million.
• General Dynamics reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings per share of $4.10 versus the $3.67 estimate and revenue of $13.48 billion, up 10.3% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.59 per share from $1.50, bringing the annualized payout to $6.36 and a yield of about 1.8%.

Savant Capital LLC lessened its holdings in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 31.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,873 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 3,158 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,314,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GD. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in General Dynamics by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,885 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in General Dynamics by 140.2% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,445 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,011 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth $240,000. Flow Traders U.S. LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth $352,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth $1,284,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.1%

GD stock opened at $346.47 on Monday. 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 Corporation has a twelve month low of $268.10 and a twelve month high of $369.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.34. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $340.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $346.54.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.66 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.62 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th were given a dividend of $1.59 per share. This represents a $6.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 10th. General Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $385.00 to $380.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of General Dynamics from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $385.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $387.40.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other news, EVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 3,819 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,825,134.50. This represents a 7.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,918 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.09, for a total transaction of $11,655,934.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 766,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $271,394,759.13. The trade was a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 119,600 shares of company stock worth $41,650,580. 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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