General Electric (NYSE:GE) Stock Price Up 0.8%

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) shares traded up 0.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $169.44 and last traded at $169.38. 930,087 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 7,825,200 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.97.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on GE. TheStreet raised shares of General Electric from a "c+" rating to a "b+" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. StockNews.com started coverage on General Electric in a research report on Monday, April 29th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on General Electric from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on General Electric from $190.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on General Electric from $165.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $172.29.

General Electric Stock Up 0.5 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $162.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.17. The company has a market capitalization of $184.75 billion, a PE ratio of 55.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.17.

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The conglomerate reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.17. General Electric had a net margin of 5.05% and a return on equity of 12.54%. The business had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 3.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. This is an increase from General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. General Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric

In related news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at $8,153,863.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of General Electric

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GE. Halpern Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of General Electric by 968.4% in the fourth quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. now owns 203 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its stake in General Electric by 90.2% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 232 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC boosted its position in General Electric by 55.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 243 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 74.77% of the company's stock.

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.