First Bank & Trust Raises Stock Holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

First Bank & Trust boosted its position in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,439 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust’s holdings in General Electric were worth $271,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GE. Newport Trust Company LLC purchased a new position in General Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,613,332,000. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 2,818.1% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,749,560 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,237,930,000 after acquiring an additional 12,312,648 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its position in General Electric by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 59,100,643 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,373,936,000 after purchasing an additional 5,309,543 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in General Electric by 221.6% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,121,741 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,250,079,000 after acquiring an additional 4,907,530 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in shares of General Electric during the second quarter valued at $580,200,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Electric Stock Performance

GE opened at $179.10 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $179.90 and a 200-day moving average of $168.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.13. General Electric has a 52-week low of $84.58 and a 52-week high of $194.80. The company has a market cap of $194.20 billion, a PE ratio of 31.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.18.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $9.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.02 billion. General Electric had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that General Electric will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of General Electric from $212.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on General Electric from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of General Electric from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered shares of General Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Melius Research upped their price target on shares of General Electric from $194.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.93.

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.