Hendershot Investments Inc. Boosts Stake in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Hendershot Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 10.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,608 shares during the period. General Dynamics accounts for approximately 1.4% of Hendershot Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Hendershot Investments Inc.’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $10,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GD. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted 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. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Dynamics news, Director Laura J. Schumacher sold 1,796 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.68, for a total transaction of $459,201.28. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,857,224. The trade was a 13.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 5,540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,701,349.36. The trade was a 21.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of GD opened at $254.84 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $264.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $285.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.61. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $247.01 and a twelve month high of $316.90.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.14). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 7.93%. Equities analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 4th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

General Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on GD shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $303.00 to $295.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $283.00 price target (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective (down from $345.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $300.06.

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.