Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Purchases Shares of 37,127 General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 37,127 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $9,783,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $279,582,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at $197,238,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,780,078 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $6,265,813,000 after acquiring an additional 706,317 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,734,148 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,774,381,000 after acquiring an additional 463,497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 6,387.2% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 401,236 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $105,722,000 after acquiring an additional 395,051 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,195.12. This represents a 37.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD traded down $0.92 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $275.12. The stock had a trading volume of 772,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,381,112. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $272.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $266.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $239.20 and a 1-year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.43 by $0.23. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. The firm had revenue of $12.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.92 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.88 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. General Dynamics's payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Argus set a $295.00 target price on General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group raised their price objective on General Dynamics from $268.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $293.00.

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.