Empowered Funds LLC Acquires 292 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 3.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,406 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 292 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $2,540,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in General Dynamics by 241.7% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. American Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on GD. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on General Dynamics from $343.00 to $331.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on General Dynamics from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on General Dynamics from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on General Dynamics from $309.00 to $306.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Dynamics

In other General Dynamics news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the company’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 sale, the director now owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 26.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

GD stock opened at $280.98 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $301.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $296.28. General Dynamics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.87 and a fifty-two week high of $316.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.26 billion, a PE ratio of 21.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 7.90%. The company had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.04 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 13.98 EPS for the current year.

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.