First Command Advisory Services Inc. Increases Position in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

First Command Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) by 251.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,954 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,398 shares during the quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $666,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust raised its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 3,417 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,165,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Chilton Capital Management LLC raised its position in General Dynamics by 26.5% during the third quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 4,189 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,428,000 after acquiring an additional 878 shares during the period. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at $225,000. Clark Financial Services Group Inc. BD grew its position in shares of General Dynamics by 75.4% in the third quarter. Clark Financial Services Group Inc. BD now owns 2,126 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 914 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 11.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 39,023 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $13,313,000 after purchasing an additional 3,923 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE GD opened at $363.61 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $346.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $333.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.41. General Dynamics Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $239.20 and a fifty-two week high of $369.70.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.19. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 18.27% and a net margin of 8.18%.The business had revenue of $12.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.35 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 38.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on GD shares. Vertical Research raised shares of General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley set a $385.00 price target on General Dynamics in a research report on Monday, October 27th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on General Dynamics from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $366.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other news, VP David Paddock sold 20,360 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $334.92, for a total value of $6,818,971.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 36,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,272,808.48. This represents a 35.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About General Dynamics

General Dynamics is a major American aerospace and defense contractor that designs, manufactures and supports a broad range of products and services for government and commercial customers worldwide. Headquartered in the United States (Reston, Virginia), the company supplies platforms and systems used by armed forces, civil authorities and private operators across multiple domains including air, land, sea and cyber.

Its principal activities span several operating businesses: a business aviation unit that develops and supports Gulfstream business jets; land systems that produce armored combat vehicles and related logistics and sustainment services; marine systems that design and construct submarines and surface ships for navies; and mission systems and information technology operations that provide command-and-control, communications, cybersecurity and systems-integration services.