General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-one analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $304.88.

Several brokerages recently commented on GD. Baird R W cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on General Dynamics from $330.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Vertical Research downgraded General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $352.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Dynamics news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total transaction of $1,556,241.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. This represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Dynamics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in General Dynamics by 40,389.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,379,472 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $416,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376,065 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 9.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,945,110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,307,612,000 after acquiring an additional 943,247 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 13.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,557,404 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,674,998,000 after acquiring an additional 638,342 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 117.0% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 858,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $259,469,000 after acquiring an additional 463,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in General Dynamics by 2,189.3% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 374,207 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $108,572,000 after purchasing an additional 357,861 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

General Dynamics Stock Down 0.9 %

GD stock opened at $266.22 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $269.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $287.70. General Dynamics has a twelve month low of $257.26 and a twelve month high of $316.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.20 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.26%.

General Dynamics declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.