Ruffer LLP Sells 5,043 Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Ruffer LLP lowered its holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 101,939 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 5,043 shares during the quarter. Ruffer LLP’s holdings in General Electric were worth $17,003,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of General Electric during the third quarter worth $25,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in General Electric in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in General Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of General Electric in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group raised their price objective on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Electric presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.31.

General Electric Price Performance

Shares of GE opened at $194.08 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.81. General Electric has a 1-year low of $130.38 and a 1-year high of $212.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $193.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $183.11. The stock has a market cap of $208.31 billion, a PE ratio of 32.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.27. General Electric had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 14.31%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. This is an increase from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. General Electric’s payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

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.