General Electric (NYSE:GE) Stock Price Down 1.9%

Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) traded down 1.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $153.63 and last traded at $154.44. 1,616,943 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 6,673,797 shares. The stock had previously closed at $157.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of General Electric from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of General Electric in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of General Electric in a report on Saturday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of General Electric from $180.00 to $148.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of General Electric from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.07.

General Electric Trading Down 1.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $157.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.04. The firm has a market cap of $169.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.29.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. General Electric had a net margin of 13.95% and a return on equity of 10.88%. The firm had revenue of $19.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. General Electric’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that General Electric will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is a positive change from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 3.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $1,843,615.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 48,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,552,351.45. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other General Electric news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total transaction of $3,195,107.85. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $1,843,615.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 48,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,552,351.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Electric

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Halpern Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of General Electric by 968.4% in the fourth quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. now owns 203 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Aspect Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Electric Company Profile

General Electric Company operates as a high-tech industrial company in Europe, China, Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa. It offers gas and steam turbines, full balance of plant, upgrade, and service solutions, as well as data-leveraging software for power generation, industrial, government, and other customers.