AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Buys 1,091 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 12.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,636 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,091 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,539,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning grew its stake in General Dynamics by 4.2% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 46,948 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $14,188,000 after acquiring an additional 1,906 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 2.3% in the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 6,808 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,057,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Marshall Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at about $582,000. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its stake in General Dynamics by 1.0% in the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 7,101 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,146,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its stake in General Dynamics by 6.2% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 25,354 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,662,000 after acquiring an additional 1,476 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $241.98 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $261.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $284.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $239.87 and a 12-month high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. On average, analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is 41.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on GD shares. Baird R W cut General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wolfe Research cut General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $360.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $298.59.

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.