Exchange Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Exchange Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 10,890 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 54 shares during the quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GD. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC raised its position in General Dynamics by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 955 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. raised its position in shares of General Dynamics by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 5,461 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,650,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its stake in General Dynamics by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 3,013 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $911,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in General Dynamics by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 2,042 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $617,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Freedom Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in General Dynamics by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,344 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,313,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group cut their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $307.00 to $284.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $315.00 to $295.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $298.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

General Dynamics Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:GD opened at $246.24 on Tuesday. General Dynamics Co. has a 12 month low of $239.87 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.61. 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 business’s 50-day moving average is $259.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $282.18.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Research analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.64%.

General Dynamics declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board 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.