General Electric (NYSE:GE) Shares Sold by Accredited Investors Inc.

Accredited Investors Inc. reduced its stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 10.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,948 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 783 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $1,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in General Electric by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 6,805 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,135,000 after buying an additional 689 shares in the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in General Electric by 125.4% during the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 43,794 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $7,305,000 after buying an additional 24,363 shares during the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 12,315 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,054,000 after purchasing an additional 2,526 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. grew its holdings in General Electric by 402.8% in the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 914,738 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $147,339,000 after buying an additional 732,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its position in General Electric by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 50,935 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $8,495,000 after purchasing an additional 5,754 shares during the period. 74.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Electric Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of General Electric stock opened at $182.50 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $195.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.47, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.04. General Electric has a 12-month low of $146.78 and a 12-month high of $214.21. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $199.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.70.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, analysts forecast that General Electric will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. This is a boost from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on GE shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of General Electric from $235.00 to $228.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of General Electric in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $213.27.

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.