Partners in Financial Planning Invests $564,000 in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Partners in Financial Planning acquired a new position in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,382 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $564,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in GE. Circle Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Electric in the third quarter valued at approximately $226,000. L.M. Kohn & Company bought a new stake in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter worth about $255,000. Acropolis Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at about $274,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in General Electric in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in General Electric during the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.77% of the company's stock.

General Electric Price Performance

NYSE:GE traded down $10.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $189.68. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,879,871 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,431,123. General Electric has a fifty-two week low of $138.01 and a fifty-two week high of $214.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $202.43 and a 200-day moving average of $187.12. The company has a market capitalization of $203.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19.

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

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This is an increase from General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. General Electric's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on GE. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America raised their price target on General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of General Electric in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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 research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $211.31.

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.