General Electric (NYSE:GE) Trading Down 0.3% – Here’s Why

General Electric (NYSE:GE)’s stock price dropped 0.3% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $170.13 and last traded at $170.89. Approximately 460,675 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 6,105,257 shares. The stock had previously closed at $171.49.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on GE. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of General Electric from $201.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America lifted their price target on General Electric from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on General Electric from $223.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective on General Electric from $198.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Melius Research boosted their target price on shares of General Electric from $194.00 to $202.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.93.

General Electric Stock Up 0.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $185.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $176.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $172.69.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $9.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. General Electric’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that General Electric will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. General Electric’s payout ratio is 19.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric

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

Institutional Trading of General Electric

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the third quarter worth about $25,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in General Electric by 97.5% in the 2nd quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 158 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. 74.77% of the stock is 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.