Avestar Capital LLC Raises Position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Avestar Capital LLC grew its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 9.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,492 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the quarter. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $753,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in General Dynamics by 241.7% in the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $26,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $30,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,106,515.60. This trade represents a 26.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on GD. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley raised General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $293.00 to $345.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $333.00 to $352.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.69.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE:GD opened at $282.01 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $299.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $295.82. The stock has a market cap of $77.54 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.32. General Dynamics Co. has a one year low of $243.87 and a one year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 16.59%. The firm had revenue of $11.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.04 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.