US Bancorp DE Increases Stock Position in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD)

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE increased its stake in General Dynamics Corporation by 0.8%, owning 108,985 shares worth approximately $29.7 million after acquiring an additional 909 shares in the first quarter.
• Insider selling activity was notable, with EVP Mark Lagrand Burns selling 43,860 shares at an average price of $312.28, resulting in a 52.38% decrease in his position.
• General Dynamics reported strong earnings with a Q2 EPS of $3.74, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, representing a yield of 1.9%.

US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 108,985 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 909 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $29,707,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC raised its position in General Dynamics by 5.2% during the first quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,211,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its stake in General Dynamics by 2.7% during the first quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 13,586 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,703,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $366,000. Davis R M Inc. increased its position in General Dynamics by 35.3% during the 1st quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 2,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $606,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in General Dynamics by 8.2% in the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 269,515 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $73,464,000 after buying an additional 20,491 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Leon Rudy F. De sold 5,490 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $312.81, for a total value of $1,717,326.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,715,137.23. This represents a 50.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 178,821 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.13, for a total transaction of $50,629,589.73. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 769,607 shares in the company, valued at $217,898,829.91. The trade was a 18.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 268,370 shares of company stock worth $78,408,011 over the last ninety days. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

General Dynamics Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE:GD traded up $1.36 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $315.12. 893,398 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,478,730. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $292.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $274.57. General Dynamics Corporation has a one year low of $239.20 and a one year high of $322.50. The company has a market cap of $84.76 billion, a PE ratio of 21.15, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.48.

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

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. General Dynamics's payout ratio is 40.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded General Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $298.00 to $342.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $284.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Argus set a $295.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $314.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on General Dynamics from $348.00 to $368.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $315.78.

General Dynamics 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.