Stevens Capital Management LP Grows Position in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Stevens Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) by 51.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,911 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 7,475 shares during the period. General Electric accounts for approximately 0.7% of Stevens Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Stevens Capital Management LP's holdings in General Electric were worth $2,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Abbrea Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of General Electric by 47.1% during the fourth quarter. Abbrea Capital LLC now owns 4,179 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 1,338 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of General Electric by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 6,477 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $827,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of General Electric by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 26,362 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $3,365,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Fractal Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter worth $204,000. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC acquired a new position in General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,244,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

General Electric Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE GE traded up $1.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $162.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,896,674 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,112,607. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $160.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $136.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.85. General Electric has a 52 week low of $77.28 and a 52 week high of $163.65. The stock has a market cap of $177.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.29.

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The conglomerate reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $15.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that General Electric will post 3.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This is a boost from General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. General Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.72%.

Insider Transactions at General Electric

In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the company's 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total value of $1,843,615.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,552,351.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of General Electric from $190.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays cut their target price on General Electric from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. TheStreet upgraded General Electric from a "c+" rating to a "b+" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on General Electric from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $170.00.

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.