General Electric (NYSE:GE) Stock Price Down 0.6%

General Electric (NYSE:GE)’s share price dropped 0.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $160.34 and last traded at $161.82. Approximately 601,241 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 7,333,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at $162.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on General Electric from $165.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $148.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on General Electric from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on General Electric from $120.43 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Two 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, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $177.27.

General Electric Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $159.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.58. The company has a market cap of $175.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.23.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last posted 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. General Electric had a return on equity of 12.54% and a net margin of 5.05%. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.27 EPS. General Electric’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 3.98 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a $0.28 dividend. This is a boost from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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 on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was 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 owns 112,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,391,821.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GE. Halpern Financial Inc. grew its holdings in General Electric by 968.4% in the 4th quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. now owns 203 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of General Electric by 90.2% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 232 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently 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.