O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Acquires 718 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 58,787 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 718 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $15,490,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in General Dynamics by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,689 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,553,000 after acquiring an additional 1,283 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $607,000. Hickory Point Bank & Trust purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth $692,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in General Dynamics by 69.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 261,992 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $69,032,000 after purchasing an additional 107,095 shares during the period. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $550,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:GD opened at $268.99 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $258.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $276.60. The company has a market cap of $72.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $239.87 and a twelve month high of $316.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

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

General Dynamics declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total value of $459,201.28. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,857,224. This represents a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Marguerite Amy Gilliland sold 27,562 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.11, for a total value of $7,499,895.82. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,297,195.12. The trade was a 37.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on GD shares. Citigroup cut their price target on General Dynamics from $360.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $244.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Vertical Research downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on General Dynamics from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.71.

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.