General Electric (NYSE:GE) Reaches New 52-Week High After Earnings Beat

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $202.50 and last traded at $204.64, with a volume of 637259 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $188.36.

The conglomerate reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.27. General Electric had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 11.48%.

General Electric Dividend Announcement

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 given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. General Electric's dividend payout ratio is 19.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Melius Research increased their price target on shares of General Electric from $194.00 to $202.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on General Electric from $235.00 to $228.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of General Electric in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on General Electric from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, General Electric has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $205.80.

Insider Activity

In other General Electric news, SVP Riccardo Procacci sold 7,000 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.13, for a total value of $1,267,910.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,407,036.57. This trade represents a 34.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Russell Stokes sold 15,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 148,857 shares in the company, valued at $26,539,714.53. The trade was a 9.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new position in shares of General Electric in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in General Electric in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Electric Price Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $174.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $213.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.19.

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.