General Electric (NYSE:GE) Shares Down 1.7%

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) shares fell 1.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $164.55 and last traded at $164.71. 1,302,429 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 7,731,339 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on GE. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on General Electric from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Argus increased their price objective on General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of General Electric from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of General Electric from $120.43 to $186.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of General Electric from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $172.29.

General Electric Trading Down 2.4 %

The stock's 50 day moving average price is $162.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $139.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $178.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

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

General Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. This is a boost from General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. General Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric

In other General Electric news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total value of $3,195,107.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of General Electric by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,311 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $3,613,000 after purchasing an additional 6,419 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in General Electric by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 261,187 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $33,335,000 after acquiring an additional 28,985 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in General Electric by 10.9% during the third quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 109,332 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $12,087,000 after acquiring an additional 10,722 shares during the last quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC boosted its position in General Electric by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,783 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $34,432,000 after acquiring an additional 22,998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in General Electric during the third quarter worth about $1,846,000. Hedge funds and other 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.

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