Commons Capital LLC Raises Stock Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Commons Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,066 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the quarter. General Dynamics accounts for about 0.7% of Commons Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Commons Capital LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $808,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics in the third quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GD shares. Baird R W lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada cut General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $290.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. TD Cowen raised General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $283.00 to $245.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $330.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.88.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GD opened at $271.30 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $271.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $288.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $74.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $247.88 and a 1-year high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its earnings results 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 analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.04 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

General Dynamics announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 4th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at General Dynamics

In related news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.