General Dynamics Corporation · GD · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026

General Dynamics raises EPS outlook as backlog reaches a record $136.5 billion

The Q2 analysis supports a constructive operating trajectory: demand remained strong across aerospace, defense and technology, backlog reached a record $136.5 billion, and management raised full-year EPS guidance. The counterweight is execution risk, particularly higher investment needs, shipbuilding capacity, supply-chain concentration and fixed-price contracts.

Reported Before market openNYSEIndustrials $92.91B market cap
100quality score

Earnings scorecard

Reported versus consensus
Reported EPS $4.24 Consensus $3.96
EPS surprise +7.1% Reported versus consensus
Reported revenue $14.09B Consensus $13.52B
Revenue surprise +4.2% Reported versus consensus

Market reaction

prior-close to event-session close
Stock move -3.1% Event window
SPY move -1.5% Same window
Abnormal move -1.6% Stock minus SPY
Volume 1.7× Versus trailing sessions
Subsequent drift +0.3% Up to 20 sessions
GDSPY benchmark

Ask FN2 about GD FY2026 Q2

Transcript, numbers and history already loaded

Free account. Your question opens in FN2 with this report's transcript and numbers attached.

Transcript intelligence

What changed

Compared with the prior quarter, reported backlog increased to a record $136.5 billion from $131 billion, full-year EPS guidance moved to $16.80-$16.90 from $16.45-$16.55, and management emphasized increased second-half capex for shipyard throughput. The current analysis also highlights a 142% quarterly cash-conversion rate and a $500 million pension contribution.

Guidance delta

Management raised full-year EPS guidance to $16.80-$16.90 from the prior quarter's $16.45-$16.55 range.

Key takeaways

  • Q2 revenue was $14.1 billion and EPS was $4.24, with double-digit earnings growth and margin expansion.
  • Record backlog of $136.5 billion and strong book-to-bill ratios support demand visibility across segments.
  • Management plans higher second-half capex to accelerate shipyard production while maintaining a roughly 105% cash-conversion target for the year.
  • Supply-chain conditions improved, but single-source components and execution remain key risks.

Management priorities

  • Deliver approximately 160 Gulfstream airplanes in 2026 and advance the G300, G400 and G800 programs.
  • Accelerate shipyard investment for submarines, DDG-51 destroyers and auxiliary ships.
  • Pursue OTA and agile-contract opportunities for GDIT and Mission Systems.
  • Maintain the approximately 105% cash-conversion target for the year.

Follow GD with an agent that reads every filing, transcript, and price print. Free to start.

Try FN2 free

Earnings History

Estimate Beat Miss Match
GD EPS earnings history estimate and actual scatter chart 9 reported fiscal quarters and 4 future estimate-only quarters. Q1 '24 estimate $2.93 Q1 '24 actual $2.88, miss Q2 '24 estimate $3.27 Q2 '24 actual $3.26, match Q3 '24 estimate $3.48 Q3 '24 actual $3.35, miss Q2 '25 estimate $3.55 Q2 '25 actual $3.74, beat Q3 '25 estimate $3.70 Q3 '25 actual $3.88, beat Q4 '25 estimate $4.11 Q4 '25 actual $4.17, beat Q1 '26 estimate $3.67 Q1 '26 actual $4.10, beat Q2 '26 estimate $3.96 Q2 '26 actual $4.24, beat Q3 '26 estimate $4.12 Q4 '26 estimate $4.51 Q1 '27 estimate $4.31 Q2 '27 estimate $4.53
Show 1 more >

Analyst Consensus ?

ConsensusBuy35 ratings
Bullish2057.1%
Neutral1440.0%
Bearish12.9%

Analyst 52W Price Targets

$344.08Current
$176Low
$358.39Average
$465High

Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Sep 23, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.

Firm-level rating actions

FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.

FirmRatingPrior ratingActionDate
UBS Neutral NeutralMaintainSep 8, 2026
Wells Fargo Overweight OverweightMaintainAug 4, 2026
TD Cowen Buy BuyMaintainJul 30, 2026
Susquehanna Positive PositiveMaintainJul 30, 2026
RBC Capital Sector Perform Sector PerformMaintainJul 30, 2026
Morgan Stanley Overweight OverweightMaintainJul 30, 2026
Citigroup Neutral NeutralMaintainJul 30, 2026
BNP Paribas Outperform OutperformMaintainJul 30, 2026
Jefferies Buy BuyMaintainJul 9, 2026
B of A Securities Buy BuyMaintainJul 6, 2026
JP Morgan Overweight OverweightMaintainApr 30, 2026
Bernstein Market Perform Market PerformMaintainOct 28, 2025
Seaport Global Buy NeutralUpgradeSep 29, 2025
Barclays Overweight OverweightMaintainJul 29, 2025
Wolfe Research Outperform Peer PerformUpgradeJul 24, 2025
Baird Neutral NeutralMaintainJul 24, 2025
Deutsche Bank Buy HoldUpgradeJul 8, 2025
TD Securities Buy BuyMaintainApr 24, 2025
William Blair Market Perform OutperformDowngradeFeb 21, 2025
Goldman Sachs Sell NeutralDowngradeDec 12, 2024
Argus Research Buy BuyMaintainApr 29, 2024
Alembic Global Neutral OverweightDowngradeJan 29, 2024
Berenberg Market Perform Market PerformMaintainSep 26, 2023
Credit Suisse Neutral NeutralMaintainApr 27, 2023
Cowen & Co. Outperform OutperformMaintainMar 29, 2021
Stifel Hold HoldMaintainJul 30, 2020
CFRA Buy HoldUpgradeFeb 12, 2020
Argus Hold BuyDowngradeJan 31, 2019
Stifel Nicolaus Hold HoldMaintainApr 26, 2018
Bank of America Buy BuyMaintainJan 25, 2018
Vertical Research Buy BuyMaintainOct 28, 2016
Drexel Hamilton Hold BuyDowngradeJul 30, 2015
Buckingham Research Buy NeutralUpgradeOct 13, 2014
CRT Capital Hold HoldMaintainApr 24, 2014
Oppenheimer Outperform Market PerformUpgradeJan 22, 2014
Show less

Named analyst price targets

Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $344.08. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.

FirmAnalyst52W targetPrice when postedUpsideDate
UBSGavin Parsons$408$359.39 +18.6%Sep 8, 2026
BernsteinDouglas Harned$421$397.12 +22.4%Aug 10, 2026
UBSAnalyst unavailable$395$384.52 +14.8%Aug 3, 2026
Morgan StanleyKristine Liwag$465$380.54 +35.1%Jul 30, 2026
RBC CapitalKen Herbert$410$375.83 +19.2%Jul 30, 2026
Deutsche BankAnalyst unavailable$384$376.61 +11.6%Jul 30, 2026
Robert W. BairdAnalyst unavailable$430$376 +25.0%Jul 30, 2026
JefferiesAnalyst unavailable$440$373.48 +27.9%Jul 9, 2026
JefferiesAnalyst unavailable$400$341.07 +16.3%Jun 11, 2026
Morgan StanleyKristine Liwag$435$341.05 +26.4%Apr 30, 2026
UBSGavin Parsons$371$338.73 +7.8%Apr 30, 2026
JefferiesSheila Kahyaoglu$385$351.09 +11.9%Feb 1, 2026
UBSAnalyst unavailable$393$356.68 +14.2%Jan 29, 2026
Seaport GlobalRichard Safran$444$365.4 +29.0%Jan 22, 2026
SusquehannaAnalyst unavailable$420$364.17 +22.1%Jan 15, 2026
UBSAnalyst unavailable$388$363.06 +12.8%Jan 15, 2026
BernsteinAnalyst unavailable$398$356.92 +15.7%Jan 12, 2026
Morgan StanleyAnalyst unavailable$408$340.6 +18.6%Dec 16, 2025
BernsteinAnalyst unavailable$388$351.22 +12.8%Oct 28, 2025
Morgan StanleyKristine Liwag$385$347.48 +11.9%Oct 27, 2025
Robert W. BairdPeter Arment$390$352.76 +13.3%Oct 27, 2025
UBSGavin Parsons$381$350.77 +10.7%Oct 27, 2025
SusquehannaAnalyst unavailable$406$350.77 +18.0%Oct 27, 2025
Vertical ResearchAnalyst unavailable$400$350.77 +16.3%Oct 27, 2025
Morgan StanleyAnalyst unavailable$360$336.87 +4.6%Oct 15, 2025
Deutsche BankAnalyst unavailable$400$343.43 +16.3%Oct 8, 2025
Seaport GlobalAnalyst unavailable$376$330.34 +9.3%Sep 29, 2025
BernsteinDouglas Harned$314$304.85 -8.7%Jul 14, 2025
JefferiesSheila Kahyaoglu$325$299.94 -5.5%Jul 9, 2025
Argus ResearchJohn Eade$295$270.61 -14.3%May 6, 2025
Morgan StanleyKristine Liwag$305$276.63 -11.4%Apr 16, 2025
SusquehannaCharles Minervino$315$276.04 -8.5%Apr 2, 2025
Wells FargoAnalyst unavailable$261$271.56 -24.1%Mar 7, 2025
BarclaysDavid Strauss$285$257.43 -17.2%Feb 4, 2025
JefferiesSheila Kahyaoglu$345$301.75 +0.3%Oct 30, 2024
RBC CapitalMichael Eisen$330$304.4 -4.1%Oct 24, 2024
Deutsche BankScott Deuschle$314$301.11 -8.7%Oct 3, 2024
Morgan StanleyKristine Liwag$345$290.8 +0.3%Aug 9, 2024
BarclaysDavid Strauss$325$289.49 -5.5%Jul 30, 2024
Deutsche BankScott Deuschle$320$289.88 -7.0%Jul 29, 2024
Wells FargoMatthew Akers$334$284.67 -2.9%Jul 25, 2024
Robert W. BairdPeter Arment$345$294.46 +0.3%Jul 24, 2024
CFRAStewart Glickman$330$298.01 -4.1%May 22, 2024
Argus ResearchJohn Eade$310$289.09 -9.9%Apr 29, 2024
JefferiesSheila Kahyaoglu$335$287.79 -2.6%Apr 29, 2024
RBC CapitalMichael Eisen$320$281.11 -7.0%Apr 25, 2024
BarclaysDavid Strauss$310$287.87 -9.9%Apr 15, 2024
Deutsche BankScott Deuschle$324$293.33 -5.8%Apr 4, 2024
RBC CapitalMichael Eisen$325$291.55 -5.5%Apr 2, 2024
JefferiesSheila Kahyaoglu$305$289.56 -11.4%Apr 1, 2024
Wolfe ResearchMyles Walton$325$282.49 -5.5%Apr 1, 2024
SusquehannaCharles Minervino$270$233 -21.5%Oct 25, 2023
Robert W. BairdPeter Arment$220$214.83 -36.1%Apr 27, 2023
CitigroupAnalyst unavailable$298$248 -13.4%Dec 8, 2022
Wells FargoAnalyst unavailable$249$217.32 -27.6%Sep 28, 2022
RBC CapitalKen Herbert$275$231.05 -20.1%Aug 30, 2022
Wells FargoAnalyst unavailable$256$219.85 -25.6%Jul 28, 2022
SusquehannaCharles Minervino$285$236.53 -17.2%Apr 30, 2022
Wells FargoMatthew Akers$282$233.83 -18.0%Mar 14, 2022
Wells FargoMatthew Akers$235$213.1 -31.7%Jan 15, 2022
SusquehannaCharles Minervino$240$200.42 -30.2%Oct 28, 2021
Goldman SachsNoah Poponak$176$193.46 -48.8%Sep 23, 2021
Credit SuisseRobert Spingarn$198$194.83 -42.5%Jul 29, 2021
Argus ResearchJohn Eade$225$190.35 -34.6%May 7, 2021
Show less

Track every rating change on GD the moment it posts. Free to start.

Start free

Company context

Snapshot as of publication

General Dynamics Corporation is a global leader in the aerospace and defense industry, with its operations structured across four key divisions: Aerospace, Marine Systems, Combat Systems, and Technologies. The Aerospace segment focuses on the design, production, and sale of business jets, alongside offering a full suite of aviation services including aircraft maintenance, repair, management, charter services, and ground support. Marine Systems specializes in shipbuilding for the U.S. Navy, constructing nuclear-powered submarines, surface warships, and auxiliary vessels. This division also builds various commercial ships, such as tankers and cargo carriers. Furthermore, it provides extensive maintenance, modernization, and lifecycle support, along with engineering and design services for both naval and commercial fleets.…

Historical context

All GD earnings

Industrials peers this season

Latest reports in the same sector

Latest beats and misses

Who reports next

Get the GD recap when the next report posts

One email per quarter with the scorecard, the market reaction and what changed on the call. No account needed.

Sources

  1. Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-07-29T21:05:33.341994+00:00
  2. FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-09-03T01:23:14.877038+00:00
  3. Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-09-23T17:50:57.051435+00:00
  4. Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-09-23T17:50:57.048504+00:00

Methodology

Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.

Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.

Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.

By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-09-23. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.