Smith Salley Wealth Management Cuts Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Smith Salley Wealth Management cut its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 978 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 38 shares during the quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners grew its position in shares of General Dynamics by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Baird R W downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $295.00 to $279.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $330.00 to $315.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.53.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE GD opened at $266.86 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $272.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $288.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 1 year low of $247.36 and a 1 year high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. General Dynamics’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 EPS. Analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 43.26%.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.