ING Groep NV Grows Stock Position in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

ING Groep NV raised its holdings in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) by 24.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 205,303 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 40,573 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in General Electric were worth $26,203,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Halpern Financial Inc. increased its position in General Electric by 968.4% during the 4th quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. now owns 203 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of General Electric by 90.2% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 232 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Electric by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 243 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in General Electric during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.77% of the company's stock.

General Electric Stock Performance

General Electric stock traded down $1.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $159.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,946,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,735,205. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. General Electric has a twelve month low of $79.76 and a twelve month high of $170.80. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $162.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.96. The firm has a market cap of $175.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.42, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.25.

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

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th were given a $0.28 dividend. This is a boost from General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. General Electric's dividend payout ratio is 36.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on GE. Vertical Research initiated coverage on General Electric in a report on Thursday, April 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $160.00 price target for the company. TheStreet raised shares of General Electric from a "c+" rating to a "b+" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of General Electric from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on General Electric from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on General Electric from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.21.

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.

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