Russell Investments Group Ltd. Boosts Position in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 422,961 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,450 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $70,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of General Electric by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 89,815,318 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $14,980,297,000 after purchasing an additional 410,172 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in General Electric by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,117,418 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,846,587,000 after buying an additional 529,457 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in General Electric in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,375,439,000. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in General Electric by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,878,650 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,314,080,000 after acquiring an additional 106,891 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of General Electric by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,766,421 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,128,571,000 after acquiring an additional 115,257 shares during the last quarter. 74.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GE opened at $166.76 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $201.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.07. General Electric has a 52-week low of $146.78 and a 52-week high of $214.21. The company has a market cap of $178.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.09.

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

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This is an increase from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on GE. Northcoast Research began coverage on General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of General Electric in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $214.73.

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.