Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Has $26.66 Million Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. decreased its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,196 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 4,681 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $26,664,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GD. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on GD. BTIG Research cut shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Vertical Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $294.47.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $275.70 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $261.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $272.88. The company has a market cap of $73.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.21, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. 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 Co. has a one year low of $239.20 and a one year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted 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%. Analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total transaction of $7,499,895.82. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,192 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,195.12. This trade represents a 37.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.