Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Purchases 1,600 Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,500 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $4,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the first quarter worth about $25,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 241.7% in the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the first quarter worth about $29,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Dynamics in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on GD shares. Morgan Stanley raised shares of General Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $293.00 to $345.00 in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $317.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of General Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.88.

General Dynamics Price Performance

NYSE GD opened at $302.52 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $300.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $294.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. General Dynamics Co. has a 12-month low of $236.58 and a 12-month high of $313.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.61.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The aerospace company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.13). General Dynamics had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $11.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.65 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.04 earnings per share. General Dynamics’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Peter A. Wall sold 1,320 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now directly owns 3,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,515.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

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.