General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) had its price objective lifted by equities researchers at Jefferies Group to $247.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, The Fly reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the aerospace company’s stock. Jefferies Group’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 9.18% from the company’s current price. Jefferies Group also issued estimates for General Dynamics’ Q1 2018 earnings at $2.50 EPS, Q2 2018 earnings at $2.70 EPS, Q3 2018 earnings at $2.81 EPS, Q4 2018 earnings at $3.15 EPS, FY2018 earnings at $11.15 EPS and FY2021 earnings at $14.50 EPS. The analysts noted that the move was a valuation call.
Several other research firms have also commented on GD. Royal Bank of Canada set a $239.00 price target on General Dynamics and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 15th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, October 19th. Deutsche Bank reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up previously from $200.00) on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Monday, October 2nd. ValuEngine lowered General Dynamics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on General Dynamics from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.16.
Shares of General Dynamics (GD) traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $226.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,977,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,520,000. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $67,550.00, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.72. General Dynamics has a 12 month low of $175.70 and a 12 month high of $227.71.
In other General Dynamics news, VP Gregory S. Gallopoulos sold 78,370 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.93, for a total value of $15,903,624.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider John Patrick Casey sold 34,945 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.38, for a total value of $7,037,224.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 144,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,074,841.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in General Dynamics by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 645 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $129,000. WFG Advisors LP grew its position in General Dynamics by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. WFG Advisors LP now owns 668 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $132,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Fieldpoint Private Securities LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $148,000. Finally, Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. grew its position in General Dynamics by 65.3% in the 2nd quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 780 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. 86.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
General Dynamics Company Profile
General Dynamics Corporation is a global aerospace and defense company. The Company offers a portfolio of products and services in business aviation; combat vehicles, weapons systems and munitions; information technology (IT) services and C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) solutions, and shipbuilding and ship repair.
