General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Shares Purchased by Ranch Capital Advisors Inc.

Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,913 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,294,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $271.82 on Monday. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $239.87 and a one year high of $316.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $73.49 billion, a PE ratio of 19.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $257.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $279.78.

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 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%. Equities research analysts expect 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. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This is a boost from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.99%.

General Dynamics announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $245.00 to $241.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research downgraded General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. BTIG Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group dropped their price target on General Dynamics from $337.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, William Blair downgraded General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $297.71.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, 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 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 $2,857,224. This trade represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

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.