Bessemer Group Inc. Buys 1,939 Shares of General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) by 30.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,319 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,939 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,856,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in General Dynamics by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,767,330 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,338,169,000 after purchasing an additional 528,769 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 155.6% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 104,773 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $35,273,000 after buying an additional 63,781 shares during the period. Financial Planning Hawaii Inc. purchased a new stake in General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,103,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,914,000. Finally, Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 371.1% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 19,467 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,889,000 after buying an additional 15,335 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other General Dynamics news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total value of $12,596,179.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 38,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,457,677.75. This represents a 48.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $2,000,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,884,695. This represents a 33.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 78,190 shares of company stock valued at $27,041,022. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.9%

NYSE GD opened at $367.40 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.36 billion, a PE ratio of 23.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $353.69 and its 200 day moving average is $351.00. General Dynamics Corporation has a twelve month low of $293.95 and a twelve month high of $380.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. The business had revenue of $13.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.70 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 8.07%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.66 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a $1.59 dividend. This represents a $6.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group raised General Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $327.00 to $313.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $380.00 to $364.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $391.15.

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.