General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Stock Rating Lowered by Vertical Research

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Vertical Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Monday, Marketbeat reports. They presently have a $290.00 target price on the aerospace company’s stock, down from their prior target price of $352.00. Vertical Research’s price target suggests a potential upside of 11.75% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on GD. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $322.00 to $295.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. TD Cowen raised shares of General Dynamics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of General Dynamics from $331.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $311.29.

General Dynamics Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE GD opened at $259.51 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $278.61 and a 200-day moving average of $289.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.80. General Dynamics has a 12 month low of $247.36 and a 12 month high of $316.90. The company has a market cap of $71.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.04 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that General Dynamics will post 13.84 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.91, for a total value of $1,556,241.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,701,349.36. This trade represents a 21.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Dynamics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,205,330 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,292,851,000 after acquiring an additional 109,618 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 9.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,945,110 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,307,612,000 after purchasing an additional 943,247 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 2.5% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,829,662 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,366,124,000 after buying an additional 189,904 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 13.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,557,404 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,674,998,000 after buying an additional 638,342 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in General Dynamics by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,940,537 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,493,030,000 after buying an additional 24,464 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

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.