General Dynamics Corporation $GD Shares Purchased by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) by 63.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 64,964 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 25,182 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $22,297,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GD. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,885 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $760,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in General Dynamics by 140.2% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,011 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics during the second quarter worth approximately $240,000. Flow Traders U.S. LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $352,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,284,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mark Malcolm sold 5,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 10,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,884,695. This represents a 33.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark Lagrand Burns sold 36,480 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 78,190 shares of company stock valued at $27,041,022 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

General Dynamics Stock Performance

NYSE GD opened at $393.85 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $358.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $352.28. The company has a market cap of $106.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.34. General Dynamics Corporation has a 1-year low of $306.03 and a 1-year high of $395.43.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.43. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 8.07%.The firm had revenue of $13.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics Corporation will post 16.66 EPS 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. Shareholders 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 of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. General Dynamics’s payout ratio is 40.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on GD shares. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on General Dynamics in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $384.00 to $375.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup dropped 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 report on Monday, May 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $393.32.

General Dynamics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting General Dynamics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect General Dynamics to report approximately $3.97 in earnings per share and $13.54 billion in revenue for the second quarter. Expectations for a potential earnings beat are supporting investor sentiment ahead of the release. General Dynamics Q2 earnings expectations
• Positive Sentiment: The aerospace and defense sector continues to benefit from strong defense demand and improved production activity. General Dynamics is included among companies viewed as capable of meeting or exceeding second-quarter targets, which could reinforce confidence in its backlog and long-term growth prospects. Aerospace and defense earnings targets
• Neutral Sentiment: General Dynamics’ dividend remains an attraction for income-oriented investors, with a reported yield of roughly 1.63%. However, the immediate focus is likely to remain on quarterly earnings, guidance and cash flow rather than the dividend. General Dynamics dividend and earnings preview
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about rising costs, supply-chain constraints and execution risks. Any margin pressure, production delays or cautious guidance could offset strong demand and trigger profit-taking after the stock’s recent advance. Aerospace and defense earnings risks

General Dynamics 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.