Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 16.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,393 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 777 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,524,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Eudaimonia Partners LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth about $240,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its stake in General Dynamics by 188.3% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 40,830 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $10,602,000 after purchasing an additional 26,668 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in General Dynamics by 99.3% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 29,045 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,542,000 after purchasing an additional 14,468 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,056,000. Finally, Gladstone Capital Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,869,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, VP William A. Moss sold 21,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.85, for a total value of $6,206,592.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 16,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,901,586.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 49,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.50, for a total value of $14,182,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 768,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $218,773,956.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP William A. Moss sold 21,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.85, for a total transaction of $6,206,592.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 16,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,901,586.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 118,486 shares of company stock worth $34,391,642 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GD. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $345.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $305.00 to $335.00 in a report on Monday, April 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.56.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $284.88 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $78.16 billion, a PE ratio of 23.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $211.94 and a twelve month high of $302.75. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $294.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $278.64.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.89 by ($0.01). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.85%. The company had revenue of $10.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.64 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.33%.

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.