General Electric (NYSE:GE) Shares Sold by S&CO Inc.

S&CO Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 40,703 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,155 shares during the quarter. S&CO Inc.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $6,788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the third quarter worth about $30,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Electric Stock Performance

Shares of GE stock opened at $191.61 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The business has a 50 day moving average of $193.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $183.35. General Electric has a 52 week low of $130.38 and a 52 week high of $212.19. The company has a market cap of $205.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.99, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. General Electric’s payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America lifted their target price on General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on General Electric from $235.00 to $228.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on General Electric in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.31.

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.