Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 53.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,200 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 8,178 shares during the quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $1,201,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,375,439,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,544,757 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,591,970,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204,910 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in General Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $194,208,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 206.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,444,466 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $278,247,000 after buying an additional 973,135 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its holdings in General Electric by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 66,823,968 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $11,145,570,000 after purchasing an additional 965,012 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Stock Up 10.7 %

Shares of NYSE GE opened at $187.44 on Thursday. 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 50 day moving average price of $199.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $186.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.29, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.04. General Electric has a 52-week low of $146.78 and a 52-week high of $214.21.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.27. General Electric had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 14.31%. Sell-side analysts expect that General Electric will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current 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 given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. General Electric’s payout ratio is 24.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America upped their price target on General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of General Electric from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup upped their target price on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on General Electric from $250.00 to $203.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, General Electric currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $213.27.

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.