BOS Asset Management LLC Buys New Shares in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

BOS Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,533 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $404,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of GD. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,734,148 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,774,381,000 after purchasing an additional 463,497 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,542,745 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $406,498,000 after acquiring an additional 8,696 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in General Dynamics by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 861,800 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $227,076,000 after purchasing an additional 40,567 shares during the period. Fidelity National Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,349,000. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 2,177 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $574,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $275.70 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $261.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $273.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market capitalization of $73.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.21, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $239.20 and a 1-year 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 for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 17.10%. As a group, equities analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on GD shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $305.00 to $285.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Vertical Research lowered General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $261.00 to $236.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $294.47.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,297,195.12. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the completion of 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently 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.