HM Payson & Co. Purchases 2,412 Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE)

HM Payson & Co. grew its position in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,903 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 2,412 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.'s holdings in General Electric were worth $4,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Johnson & White Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in General Electric in the fourth quarter worth $733,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of General Electric by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 43,322,827 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $8,181,801,000 after purchasing an additional 898,296 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 269.8% in the 3rd quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,201 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $5,318,000 after buying an additional 20,575 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in General Electric by 60.7% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,662 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,576,000 after buying an additional 5,162 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service grew its position in General Electric by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,254,637 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $376,051,000 after buying an additional 37,884 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.77% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upped their price objective on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their price target on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, General Electric presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.31.

General Electric Price Performance

GE traded down $1.97 during trading on Friday, reaching $194.08. The stock had a trading volume of 7,681,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,375,542. The business has a 50-day moving average of $193.02 and a 200-day moving average of $183.20. General Electric has a one year low of $130.38 and a one year high of $212.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market cap of $208.31 billion, a PE ratio of 32.40, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19.

General Electric (NYSE:GE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.27. General Electric had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 14.31%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. General Electric's payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

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.