General Electric (NYSE:GE) Trading 0.4% Higher

Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) were up 0.4% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $161.00 and last traded at $160.41. Approximately 844,335 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 7,344,090 shares. The stock had previously closed at $159.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of General Electric from $190.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of General Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on General Electric from $148.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Bank of America boosted their target price on General Electric from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Electric presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.27.

General Electric Stock Down 0.2 %

The stock has a market cap of $174.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $161.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $150.77.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The conglomerate reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.25 billion. General Electric had a net margin of 5.05% and a return on equity of 12.54%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that General Electric will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 11th. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other General Electric news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 45,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.82, for a total value of $7,377,211.38. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 112,958 shares in the company, valued at $18,391,821.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Electric

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Halpern Financial Inc. grew its stake in General Electric by 968.4% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in General Electric in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in General Electric by 90.2% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 232 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 55.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 243 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.