Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 98,149 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,527 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $12,527,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Halpern Financial Inc. lifted its position in General Electric by 968.4% during the fourth quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. now owns 203 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its position in General Electric by 90.2% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 232 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its position in General Electric by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 243 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in General Electric by 808.1% during the first quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 336 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new position in General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at General Electric

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

General Electric Price Performance

GE stock opened at $156.69 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. General Electric has a 52-week low of $76.87 and a 52-week high of $158.68. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $158.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.96. The company has a market capitalization of $171.30 billion, a PE ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. General Electric had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 13.95%. The company had revenue of $19.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. General Electric’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that General Electric will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This is an increase from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. General Electric’s payout ratio is currently 13.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on GE. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on General Electric from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on General Electric from $180.00 to $148.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com began coverage on General Electric in a research note on Saturday, April 13th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Barclays dropped their price target on General Electric from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $160.07.

General Electric Company 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.