General Electric (NYSE:GE) Trading Down 0.1% – Here’s Why

General Electric (NYSE:GE)’s share price dropped 0.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $170.71 and last traded at $172.06. Approximately 895,447 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 4,068,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on GE shares. Citigroup lifted their price objective on General Electric from $198.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of General Electric from $201.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of General Electric from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Melius Research upped their price target on shares of General Electric from $194.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of General Electric in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.47.

General Electric Trading Down 0.7 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $174.34 and a 200 day moving average of $173.36. The stock has a market cap of $185.78 billion, a PE ratio of 30.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.02. General Electric had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm had revenue of $9.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.82 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Riccardo Procacci sold 7,000 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.13, for a total transaction of $1,267,910.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,407,036.57. This trade represents a 34.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Russell Stokes sold 15,550 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.29, for a total transaction of $2,772,409.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 148,857 shares in the company, valued at $26,539,714.53. This trade represents a 9.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Electric

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GE. Tsfg LLC lifted its position in shares of General Electric by 12.8% during the third quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 485 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of General Electric by 2.6% in the third quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 2,267 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $428,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. raised its stake in shares of General Electric by 1.0% in the third quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 6,299 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Management Co. boosted its holdings in General Electric by 1.2% in the third quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 5,153 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $972,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in General Electric by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,115 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.