General Dynamics Co. to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.42 (NYSE:GD)

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, December 4th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of 1.42 per share by the aerospace company on Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th.

General Dynamics has raised its dividend payment by an average of 6.1% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 33 consecutive years. General Dynamics has a payout ratio of 32.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect General Dynamics to earn $15.99 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 35.5%.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of General Dynamics stock opened at $264.92 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $275.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $288.61. The company has a market cap of $72.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics has a one year low of $247.36 and a one year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The company had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.04 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that General Dynamics will post 13.84 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen upgraded General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Baird R W lowered General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 target price (down previously from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.53.

Insider Transactions at General Dynamics

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign 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.