General Electric (NYSE:GE) Stake Reduced by BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lowered its holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) by 27.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 537,223 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 207,799 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.'s holdings in General Electric were worth $101,310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Newport Trust Company LLC purchased a new stake in General Electric during the second quarter valued at about $2,613,332,000. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in General Electric by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,405,731 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,336,257,000 after acquiring an additional 459,201 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of General Electric by 91.8% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,771,759 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,465,598,000 after acquiring an additional 3,719,894 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in General Electric by 221.6% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,121,741 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,250,079,000 after buying an additional 4,907,530 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in General Electric during the second quarter worth $580,200,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Electric Price Performance

GE opened at $177.98 on Thursday. 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 company's 50 day simple moving average is $182.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.96. General Electric has a one year low of $94.54 and a one year high of $194.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.19.

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.02 billion. General Electric had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 11.48%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at General Electric

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GE shares. StockNews.com cut shares of General Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on General Electric from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on General Electric from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on General Electric from $201.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of General Electric from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Electric presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $200.93.

General Electric 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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