BNP Paribas Financial Markets Trims Holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 309,238 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,926 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in General Dynamics were worth $93,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 worth $416,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376,065 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in General Dynamics by 2,189.3% in the second 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 last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in General Dynamics by 4.0% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,639,758 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,216,599,000 after buying an additional 293,316 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in General Dynamics by 24.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,347,247 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $391,119,000 after buying an additional 262,164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 174.8% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 384,151 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $111,458,000 after buying an additional 244,373 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total value of $406,626.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. This represents 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 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Morgan Stanley raised General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $293.00 to $345.00 in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.69.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

General Dynamics stock opened at $282.01 on Wednesday. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $243.87 and a 12-month high of $316.90. 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 $77.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $299.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $295.82.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $11.67 billion for 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 revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.04 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.