General Electric (NYSE:GE) PT Raised to $185.00

General Electric (NYSE:GE) had its price target lifted by Jefferies Financial Group from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research note released on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the conglomerate’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of General Electric from $200.00 to $165.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of General Electric from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Bank of America raised their price objective on General Electric from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on General Electric from $120.43 to $186.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on General Electric from $190.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, General Electric presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $172.29.

General Electric Price Performance

Shares of GE stock opened at $159.70 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $161.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.33. 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 has a 52-week low of $77.93 and a 52-week high of $166.26. The stock has a market cap of $174.81 billion, a PE ratio of 52.36, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.29.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The conglomerate reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.17. General Electric had a return on equity of 12.54% and a net margin of 5.05%. The business had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that General Electric will post 3.95 EPS for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the company’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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other General Electric 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 transaction 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 $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $1,843,615.55. Following the completion of the transaction, 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Electric

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Halpern Financial Inc. raised its position 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 buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in General Electric during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in General Electric by 90.2% in 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 raised its holdings in General Electric by 55.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 243 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at $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.