StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on General Electric (NYSE:GE)

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) in a report issued on Sunday. The brokerage set a "hold" rating on the conglomerate's stock.

GE has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. Barclays dropped their price objective on General Electric from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. TheStreet raised General Electric from a "c+" rating to a "b+" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on General Electric from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on General Electric from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.07.

General Electric Trading Down 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE GE traded down $4.88 during trading on Friday, reaching $148.06. The company had a trading volume of 9,566,097 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,410,895. The company's fifty day moving average price is $159.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $134.74. General Electric has a 12 month low of $76.87 and a 12 month high of $158.68. The stock has a market cap of $161.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.69, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $19.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.27 billion. General Electric had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 13.95%. The business's revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that General Electric will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other General Electric news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other General Electric news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were 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 owns 48,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,552,351.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.66% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Electric

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GE. Halpern Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of General Electric by 968.4% during the fourth quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. now owns 203 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Aspect Partners LLC purchased a new position in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.