General Electric (NYSE:GE) Stock Price Up 0.5% – Time to Buy?

Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) rose 0.5% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $175.02 and last traded at $174.96. Approximately 686,283 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 6,331,272 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GE has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of General Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of General Electric from $201.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of General Electric from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of General Electric from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of General Electric from $212.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.93.

General Electric Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $168.89. 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 stock has a market cap of $186.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.18.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $9.84 billion for 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 prior year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that General Electric will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 19.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Electric

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Carson Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of General Electric by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Carson Advisory Inc. now owns 3,199 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of General Electric by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 8,483 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,600,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $240,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of General Electric by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 9,932 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,873,000 after buying an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $9,429,000. Institutional investors own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

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.