Darden Wealth Group Inc Reduces Stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Darden Wealth Group Inc reduced its stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 13.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,551 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. Darden Wealth Group Inc’s holdings in General Electric were worth $259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in General Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,375,439,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $194,208,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased 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 acquiring an additional 973,135 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its stake in shares of General Electric by 15,750.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 768,588 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $138,368,000 after buying an additional 763,739 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of General Electric by 74.8% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 1,369,932 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $228,491,000 after purchasing an additional 586,045 shares during the last quarter. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Electric Stock Down 11.1 %

Shares of General Electric stock opened at $166.76 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $178.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.04. General Electric has a 1 year low of $146.78 and a 1 year high of $214.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $201.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.07.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released 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 predict that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 0.86%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on GE. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Northcoast Research began coverage on General Electric in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of General Electric in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.