General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.50

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, March 5th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of 1.50 per share by the aerospace company on Friday, May 9th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. This is a 5.6% increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42.

General Dynamics has raised its dividend payment by an average of 6.1% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 33 years. General Dynamics has a dividend payout ratio of 33.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect General Dynamics to earn $17.14 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.68 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 33.1%.

General Dynamics Stock Up 4.8 %

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $262.94 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $257.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $280.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. General Dynamics has a one year low of $239.87 and a one year high of $316.90. The company has a market cap of $71.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 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%. Analysts anticipate that General Dynamics will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. William Blair downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Dynamics

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in General Dynamics stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 16.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,885 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 417 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $760,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.