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General Dynamics (GD) Declares 10.5% Increase in Dividend

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Falls Church, VA-based General Dynamics Corporation (GD - Free Report) announced that its board of directors has approved a 10.5% hike in its quarterly common stock dividend. This has taken the annualized payout to $3.36 per share.

The Hike

The raised dividend is of 84 cents per share compared with the prior payment of 76 cents. The hiked dividend will be paid on May 5, 2017, to shareholders on record at the close of business on Apr 7.

We note that annual dividend hikes are becoming a habit of this defense major. This will mark the 20th consecutive annual dividend hike approved by the board of directors of General Dynamics.

The current annualized dividend yield is 1.74% compared with the industry average of 0.73%. The increase in distributable income indicates the company’s profitably implemented investment growth strategy.

Share Repurchase Plan

The board also approved the repurchase of an additional 10 million shares of the company's issued and outstanding common stock on the open market.

General Dynamic’s Financials

General Dynamics strives to maintain a flexible liquidity position. As of Dec 31, 2016, General Dynamics’ cash and cash equivalents were $2,334 million. In 2016, the company’s cash inflow from operating activities was around $2,198 million. Free cash inflow from operations in the quarter was $1,806 million. Strong performance of its diverse defense offerings has given General Dynamics the financial flexibility to pay incremental dividends. This, in turn, has pleased the company’s stockholders.

We believe that the company’s strong cash flow and organic growth will help generate sufficient funds to meet its financial commitments, including higher dividend payments.

Price Movement

General Dynamics’s stock has improved about 39.2% in the last one year, outperforming the Zacks categorized Aerospace/Defense industry’s gain of 30.6%. This could be because General Dynamics consistently maintains a strategic alliance with the U.S. Department of Defense, which allows it to enjoy a steady flow of contracts. The stock’s performance is in line with that of peers like Boeing Co. (BA - Free Report) , Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. (HII - Free Report) and Engility Holdings, Inc. keep up their industry-leading performance.

 



Zacks Rank

General Dynamics currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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