Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Boosts Stake in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Key Points

• Swiss Life Asset Management increased its stake in General Dynamics by 183% in the fourth quarter, buying 35,862 additional shares to bring its total to 55,459 shares valued at about $18.7 million.
• General Dynamics reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $4.10 versus the $3.67 estimate and revenue of $13.48 billion, which also topped expectations. Revenue rose 10.3% from a year earlier.
• The company raised its dividend to $1.59 per share quarterly, or $6.36 annually, yielding about 1.8%. Analysts currently have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target price of $388.20.

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 183.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,459 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 35,862 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $18,671,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in General Dynamics by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 8,583 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,890,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. grew its position in General Dynamics by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 1,498 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $504,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC grew its position in General Dynamics by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,115 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $712,000 after buying an additional 615 shares in the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in General Dynamics by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 9,923 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,341,000 after buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Income Insurance Ltd purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $227,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

GD stock opened at $343.90 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.38. General Dynamics Corporation has a 52 week low of $267.39 and a 52 week high of $369.70. The firm's fifty day moving average is $345.38 and its 200 day moving average is $346.78. The firm has a market cap of $93.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.34.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 8.07%.The company had revenue of $13.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.66 EPS. General Dynamics's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.62 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 10,153 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.95, for a total transaction of $3,603,807.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,975 shares in the company, valued at $13,834,176.25. This trade represents a 20.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Mark Rayha sold 4,370 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.79, for a total value of $1,524,212.30. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,767,997.44. The trade was a 35.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 51,260 shares of company stock valued at $18,133,971 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Argus upped their price objective on General Dynamics from $380.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $398.00 price objective on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Monday, January 12th. Morgan Stanley upped 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 cut their price objective on General Dynamics from $430.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $388.20.

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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