Hilltop Holdings Inc. Buys 14,617 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Hilltop Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 702.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,698 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,617 shares during the quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $5,046,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in General Dynamics by 241.7% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 120.0% in the 2nd quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In other news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of General Dynamics 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 sale, the director now owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 26.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $317.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Seaport Res Ptn cut General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.69.

General Dynamics Price Performance

General Dynamics stock opened at $276.33 on Tuesday. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $247.36 and a 12-month high of $316.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $298.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $295.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.98 billion, a PE ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.60.

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

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.