General Electric (NYSE:GE) Shares Down 0.8% – Should You Sell?

General Electric (NYSE:GE)’s share price was down 0.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $170.74 and last traded at $171.58. Approximately 1,371,924 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 4,194,340 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.89.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on GE shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on General Electric from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $201.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of General Electric in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on General Electric from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on General Electric from $223.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, General Electric currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.47.

General Electric Stock Down 0.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $185.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.17, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $174.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.02. General Electric had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The company had revenue of $9.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that General Electric will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. General Electric’s payout ratio is 19.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 15,550 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.29, for a total transaction of $2,772,409.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 148,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,539,714.53. This trade represents a 9.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Riccardo Procacci sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.13, for a total value of $1,267,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,407,036.57. This trade represents a 34.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in General Electric during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in General Electric in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in General Electric during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in General Electric during the third quarter worth $30,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.