Marotta Asset Management Sells 178 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Marotta Asset Management reduced its stake in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,883 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 178 shares during the quarter. Marotta Asset Management’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,120 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,356,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 2,022 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $587,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in General Dynamics by 46.8% during the 1st quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 113 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co increased its stake in General Dynamics by 2.5% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,503 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 1.1% during the first quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,299 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $932,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

GD opened at $299.61 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $297.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $292.77. The company has a market cap of $82.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 52-week low of $214.53 and a 52-week high of $309.97.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.30 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 16.74%. The company had revenue of $11.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.46 billion. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.70 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 11th will be paid a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 11th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 46.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.05, for a total transaction of $406,626.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,515.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut General Dynamics from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $334.00 to $317.00 in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upgraded General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 target price on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $317.06.

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.