Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Lowers Stake in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH reduced its stake in General Dynamics Corporation by 8.2%, selling 3,031 shares, leaving it with a total of 34,096 shares valued at approximately $9,294,000.
• CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 7,639 shares at an average price of $280.44, resulting in a total transaction value of over $2.14 million, which lowered her ownership to 769,607 shares.
• Analysts have set varying price targets for General Dynamics, with a consensus average target of $312.17, while the stock demonstrates a strong market interest from institutional investors, who currently hold 86.14% of the shares.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH cut its holdings in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,096 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 3,031 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $9,294,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GD. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,885 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 417 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 15,316 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $4,036,000 after buying an additional 1,327 shares in the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $426,000. Korea Investment CORP boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 41.3% in the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 169,353 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $44,623,000 after buying an additional 49,467 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 420,032 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $110,624,000 after buying an additional 43,425 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 178,821 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.13, for a total value of $50,629,589.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 769,607 shares in the company, valued at approximately $217,898,829.91. This represents a 18.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.8%

General Dynamics stock traded up $2.55 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $315.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 238,620 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,486,500. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.46. The stock's fifty day moving average is $288.30 and its 200 day moving average is $272.68. General Dynamics Corporation has a 1-year low of $239.20 and a 1-year high of $322.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.36.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $13.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.13 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.99% and a net margin of 8.13%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that General Dynamics Corporation will post 14.83 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. General Dynamics's payout ratio is currently 40.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Susquehanna lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $314.00 price objective on General Dynamics and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wolfe Research raised General Dynamics from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $360.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on General Dynamics from $348.00 to $368.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $312.17.

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.