Caxton Associates LLP Makes New Investment in General Dynamics Corporation $GD

Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,993 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $684,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GD. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 1,725.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Steph & Co. lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 65.2% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in General Dynamics during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 79.6% during the 1st quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 88 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its position in General Dynamics by 220.7% during the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 93 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.29, for a total transaction of $12,596,179.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,457,677.75. This represents a 48.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.00, for a total transaction of $2,000,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,884,695. This trade represents a 33.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 78,190 shares of company stock worth $27,041,022 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:GD opened at $389.22 on Tuesday. General Dynamics Corporation has a 52 week low of $306.03 and a 52 week high of $392.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $357.11 and a 200 day moving average of $351.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.49, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.34.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The business had revenue of $13.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.66 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.59 per share. This represents a $6.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 40.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of General Dynamics from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $380.00 to $364.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on General Dynamics from $387.00 to $377.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $391.15.

General Dynamics Company Profile

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.