General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Bought by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD - Free Report) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 47,632 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,812 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in General Dynamics were worth $12,551,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

GD stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $281.38. The stock had a trading volume of 734,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,373,245. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $270.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $268.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $75.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.49. General Dynamics Co. has a 52-week low of $239.20 and a 52-week high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $12.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.88 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th were issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 11th. This is a positive change from General Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics's payout ratio is currently 41.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $261.00 to $236.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $268.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. TD Securities increased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $293.00.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

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.