VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Makes New Investment in GE Aerospace $GE

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems purchased a new stake in GE Aerospace by acquiring 273,900 shares valued at approximately $70.5 million in the 2nd quarter.
• GE Aerospace reported earnings of $1.66 per share for the quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates of $1.43, with revenue increasing by 21.2% year-over-year to $10.15 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, which will be paid on October 27th, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.5% and a dividend payout ratio of 20.08%.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 273,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $70,499,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GE. Old North State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in GE Aerospace by 1.9% during the second quarter. Old North State Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,101 shares of the company's stock worth $542,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its holdings in shares of GE Aerospace by 18.0% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 256 shares of the company's stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Webster Bank N. A. raised its position in shares of GE Aerospace by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 1,970 shares of the company's stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Pacific Sage Partners LLC raised its position in shares of GE Aerospace by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pacific Sage Partners LLC now owns 1,220 shares of the company's stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, Ascent Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in GE Aerospace by 1.9% in the second quarter. Ascent Capital Management LLC now owns 2,273 shares of the company's stock valued at $585,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.77% of the company's stock.

GE Aerospace Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of GE opened at $300.60 on Friday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $286.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $250.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.04. GE Aerospace has a 1 year low of $159.36 and a 1 year high of $307.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $318.77 billion, a PE ratio of 41.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.49.

GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.23. GE Aerospace had a net margin of 18.64% and a return on equity of 31.32%. The company had revenue of $10.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.20 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 21.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that GE Aerospace will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GE Aerospace Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 27th. Investors of record on Monday, September 29th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 29th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. GE Aerospace's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on GE Aerospace from $34.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of GE Aerospace from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of GE Aerospace from $300.00 to $321.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $296.00 price target (up from $227.00) on shares of GE Aerospace in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of GE Aerospace from $230.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $267.13.

GE Aerospace Company Profile

GE Aerospace (also known as General Electric) is a company that specializes in providing aerospace products and services. It operates through two reportable segments: Commercial Engines and Services and Defense and Propulsion Technologies. It offers jet and turboprop engines, as well as integrated systems for commercial, military, business, and general aviation aircraft.

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