GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE) Shares Purchased by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE - Free Report) by 6.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,042,562 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 193,511 shares during the period. GE Aerospace accounts for approximately 1.0% of Baird Financial Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.28% of GE Aerospace worth $507,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of GE Aerospace during the fourth quarter worth about $2,375,439,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in GE Aerospace by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,544,757 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,591,970,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204,910 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of GE Aerospace in the 4th quarter valued at $194,208,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of GE Aerospace by 206.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,444,466 shares of the company's stock worth $278,247,000 after acquiring an additional 973,135 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of GE Aerospace by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 66,823,968 shares of the company's stock worth $11,145,570,000 after purchasing an additional 965,012 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.77% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Robert M. Giglietti sold 4,104 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.73, for a total value of $807,379.92. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 11,540 shares in the company, valued at $2,270,264.20. This represents a 26.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mohamed Ali sold 1,602 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.67, for a total transaction of $321,473.34. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,766,899.35. The trade was a 15.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of GE Aerospace in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America raised their target price on GE Aerospace from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Northcoast Research raised GE Aerospace from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $205.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of GE Aerospace from $212.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of GE Aerospace in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $216.92.

GE Aerospace Trading Up 0.6 %

GE traded up $1.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $208.87. 4,176,179 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,369,825. The company has a market cap of $222.74 billion, a PE ratio of 34.87, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The firm's fifty day moving average is $194.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.16. GE Aerospace has a 1-year low of $150.20 and a 1-year high of $214.21.

GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.20. GE Aerospace had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 14.31%. The firm had revenue of $9.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.06 billion. Equities analysts forecast that GE Aerospace will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GE Aerospace Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. This is a boost from GE Aerospace's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. GE Aerospace's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.40%.

About GE Aerospace

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.