General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Shares Up 1.2%

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)’s share price shot up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $295.58 and last traded at $294.64. 121,159 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 1,043,451 shares. The stock had previously closed at $291.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on GD. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $305.00 to $335.00 in a report on Monday, April 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup upped their target price on General Dynamics from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on General Dynamics from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Argus upped their target price on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $311.33.

General Dynamics Trading Up 2.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.87 billion, a PE ratio of 23.90, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $292.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $281.84.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.30 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The business had revenue of $11.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.46 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.70 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.54 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP William A. Moss sold 21,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.85, for a total value of $6,206,592.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 16,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,901,586.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,816,065.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP William A. Moss sold 21,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.85, for a total transaction of $6,206,592.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 16,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,901,586.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 118,486 shares of company stock valued at $34,391,642 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of General Dynamics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GD. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

About General Dynamics

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.