General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group to “Buy”

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $335.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $305.00.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com raised General Dynamics from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on General Dynamics from $280.00 to $298.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup raised their price target on General Dynamics from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on General Dynamics from $291.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors lowered General Dynamics from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $296.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Four research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $297.06.

General Dynamics Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE GD opened at $287.79 on Monday. General Dynamics has a 12 month low of $202.35 and a 12 month high of $296.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $78.96 billion, a PE ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $281.23 and its 200 day moving average is $262.41.

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

General Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business 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. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Dynamics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GD. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in General Dynamics by 1,406.1% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,696 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $596,000 after buying an additional 2,517 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of General Dynamics by 139.1% in the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 19,771 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,704,000 after acquiring an additional 11,501 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of General Dynamics by 2.2% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 156,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $34,503,000 after purchasing an additional 3,367 shares in the last quarter. Toews Corp ADV acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at $773,000. Finally, Accurate Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in General Dynamics by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,825 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $682,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% 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.