General Electric (NYSE:GE) Shares Purchased by Raymond James & Associates

Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 684,909 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 101,421 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in General Electric were worth $129,160,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in General Electric by 9.9% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 59,100,643 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $10,373,936,000 after buying an additional 5,309,543 shares in the last quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC acquired a new position in General Electric during the second quarter worth $2,613,332,000. Capital World Investors boosted its position in General Electric by 2,818.1% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,749,560 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,237,930,000 after purchasing an additional 12,312,648 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in General Electric by 5.8% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,405,731 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,336,257,000 after purchasing an additional 459,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of General Electric by 221.6% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,121,741 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,250,079,000 after buying an additional 4,907,530 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Stock Performance

General Electric stock opened at $192.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $178.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $167.42. The company has a market capitalization of $210.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.18. General Electric has a 12-month low of $84.42 and a 12-month high of $194.80.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.21. General Electric had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 7.66%. The business had revenue of $9.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that General Electric will post 4.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on GE. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of General Electric from $201.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on General Electric from $192.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on General Electric from $212.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on General Electric from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on General Electric from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, General Electric presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $196.86.

General Electric Profile

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.