New England Research & Management Inc. Increases Position in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

New England Research & Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) by 174.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,975 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 5,065 shares during the quarter. New England Research & Management Inc.'s holdings in General Electric were worth $1,330,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GE. Toth Financial Advisory Corp bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in General Electric during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in General Electric in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in General Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. 74.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric

In other General Electric news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 15,550 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.29, for a total value of $2,772,409.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 148,857 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,539,714.53. This trade represents a 9.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Riccardo Procacci sold 7,000 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.13, for a total value of $1,267,910.00. Following the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.66% of the company's stock.

General Electric Stock Performance

Shares of GE stock traded up $6.07 on Thursday, reaching $205.17. The stock had a trading volume of 3,475,053 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,282,077. General Electric has a 12 month low of $105.70 and a 12 month high of $207.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $222.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.19. The firm's 50-day moving average is $176.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.79.

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

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. General Electric's payout ratio is 18.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GE. UBS Group upped their price objective on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on General Electric from $235.00 to $228.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Three 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 MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $208.73.

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.