John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Decreases Stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. lessened its stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,817 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 232 shares during the quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $2,305,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in General Electric by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 43,322,827 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $8,181,801,000 after acquiring an additional 898,296 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of General Electric by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 22,587,961 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,244,676,000 after purchasing an additional 156,272 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of General Electric by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,878,650 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,314,080,000 after purchasing an additional 106,891 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of General Electric by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,766,421 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,128,571,000 after purchasing an additional 115,257 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of General Electric by 6.7% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,556,515 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,236,428,000 after purchasing an additional 413,388 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE:GE opened at $207.22 on Friday. 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 capitalization of $222.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.59, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.22. General Electric has a 1-year low of $124.08 and a 1-year high of $212.19. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $190.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $182.10.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. This is an increase from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 24.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of General Electric from $235.00 to $228.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of General Electric in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.31.

General Electric Company Profile

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.