General Electric (NYSE:GE) Trading 7.1% Higher Following Earnings Beat

General Electric (NYSE:GE) rose 7.1% on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $174.64 and last traded at $174.35. Approximately 6,026,527 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 15% from the average daily volume of 7,077,564 shares. The stock had previously closed at $162.76.

The conglomerate reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.21. General Electric had a return on equity of 14.59% and a net margin of 7.66%. The firm had revenue of $9.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis.

General Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 11th. General Electric’s payout ratio is 36.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on General Electric from $148.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Barclays lowered their price target on General Electric from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on General Electric from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of General Electric in a research report on Monday, April 29th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $183.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 45,309 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.82, for a total value of $7,377,211.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 112,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,391,821.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Electric

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital World Investors increased its position in General Electric by 2,818.1% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,749,560 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,237,930,000 after buying an additional 12,312,648 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at $1,193,159,000. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of General Electric by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 59,100,643 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,373,936,000 after purchasing an additional 5,309,543 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in General Electric by 221.6% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,121,741 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,250,079,000 after purchasing an additional 4,907,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at about $520,488,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Trading Up 1.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $180.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $162.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

About General Electric

General Electric Company, doing business as GE Aerospace, designs and produces commercial and defense aircraft engines, integrated engine components, electric power, and mechanical aircraft systems. It also offers aftermarket services to support its products. The company operates in the United States, Europe, China, Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa.