CapWealth Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

CapWealth Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 155,484 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,099 shares during the quarter. General Electric comprises 2.4% of CapWealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. CapWealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in General Electric were worth $19,844,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric

In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total value of $3,195,107.85. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,552,351.45. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total value of $3,195,107.85. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,153,863.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

General Electric Stock Performance

GE stock traded up $1.03 during trading on Thursday, reaching $156.70. The stock had a trading volume of 1,989,310 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,926,493. The firm has a market cap of $171.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.75, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $158.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.85 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.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $19.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.27 billion. General Electric had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 13.95%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This is a boost from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on General Electric from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen raised General Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on General Electric from $200.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on General Electric from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on General Electric in a research note on Saturday, April 13th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.07.

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.