Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC Acquires Shares of 44,267 General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC bought a new stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 44,267 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $7,383,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new position in General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the third quarter worth $25,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in General Electric in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in General Electric during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GE traded up $12.30 during trading on Thursday, reaching $200.66. 14,394,800 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,436,080. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.19. General Electric has a 52-week low of $101.16 and a 52-week high of $207.65. The company has a 50-day moving average of $174.49 and a 200-day moving average of $174.59.

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.27. General Electric had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 18.93%. Analysts forecast that General Electric will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. General Electric's payout ratio is 19.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on GE. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of General Electric in a research note on Wednesday. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on General Electric from $223.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup increased their target price on General Electric from $198.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Melius Research upped their price objective on General Electric from $194.00 to $202.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $201.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Riccardo Procacci sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.13, for a total transaction of $1,267,910.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,289 shares in the company, valued at $2,407,036.57. This trade represents a 34.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Russell Stokes sold 15,550 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.29, for a total value of $2,772,409.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 148,857 shares in the company, valued at $26,539,714.53. This trade represents a 9.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.