General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Upgraded to Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $335.00 price objective on the aerospace company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $305.00.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of General Dynamics from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $253.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, General Dynamics currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $297.06.

General Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GD opened at $286.53 on Monday. General Dynamics has a fifty-two week low of $202.35 and a fifty-two week high of $296.50. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $281.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $262.88. The company has a market capitalization of $78.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.68. 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 announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by ($0.01). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The business had revenue of $10.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.64 EPS. General Dynamics’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that General Dynamics will post 14.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. This is a boost from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,816,065.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Phebe N. Novakovic sold 49,850 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.50, for a total transaction of $14,182,325.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 768,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $218,773,956.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 13,567 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.51, for a total transaction of $3,914,215.17. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 103,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,816,065.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of General Dynamics during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.