General Dynamics Corporation $GD Shares Sold by Longview Asset Management LLC

Longview Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 27,061,451 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 245,592 shares during the quarter. General Dynamics comprises approximately 96.7% of Longview Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Longview Asset Management LLC owned 0.10% of General Dynamics worth $9,110,508,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 620.0% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 72 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Dagco Inc. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 650.0% in the third quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 75 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 32,918 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.09, for a total value of $11,655,934.62. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 766,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $271,394,759.13. This trade represents a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $13,457,677.75. This trade represents a 48.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 119,600 shares of company stock valued at $41,650,580 over the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on GD shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $430.00 to $390.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $380.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $387.40.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:GD opened at $346.47 on Friday. General Dynamics Corporation has a 12 month low of $268.10 and a 12 month high of $369.70. The firm has a market cap of $93.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.34. 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $340.85 and its 200-day moving average is $346.56.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The company had revenue of $13.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.66 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.62 EPS for the current year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th were given a $1.59 dividend. This is a positive change from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 10th. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 40.03%.

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.