Weybosset Research & Management LLC Sells 1,377 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Weybosset Research & Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 45,382 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,377 shares during the period. General Dynamics makes up about 4.8% of Weybosset Research & Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Weybosset Research & Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $12,820,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the fourth quarter worth $728,284,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 12.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 16,360,526 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,615,185,000 after purchasing an additional 1,755,276 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in General Dynamics by 10,763.2% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 923,593 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $239,829,000 after purchasing an additional 915,091 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in General Dynamics by 3,645.4% in the 4th quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 558,586 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $145,048,000 after buying an additional 543,672 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 55.2% in the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 806,917 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $178,304,000 after buying an additional 286,928 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Argus upped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $305.00 to $335.00 in a research report on Monday. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $297.06.

General Dynamics Stock Up 1.2 %

GD stock traded up $3.38 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $287.79. 1,293,625 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,116,899. The firm has a market cap of $78.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.68. General Dynamics Co. has a 1-year low of $202.35 and a 1-year high of $296.50. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $281.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $262.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.44.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $10.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.26 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.85%. General Dynamics’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is 46.33%.

General Dynamics Company Profile

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.