EP Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 2,036 Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 11.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,130 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,036 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in General Electric were worth $3,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choate Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 16,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,808,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Walker Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in General Electric by 1.7% in the first quarter. Walker Asset Management LLC now owns 4,111 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $722,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in General Electric by 2.6% in the first quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,821 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in General Electric by 1.9% in the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 3,777 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $663,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its stake in General Electric by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 4,316 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $550,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on GE. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of General Electric in a research note on Monday, April 29th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on General Electric from $148.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. TD Cowen raised General Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Argus lifted their price objective on General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of General Electric from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $183.93.

General Electric Price Performance

Shares of GE traded up $5.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $169.81. 7,287,273 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,165,553. The company has a market cap of $184.13 billion, a PE ratio of 55.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.21. General Electric has a 52-week low of $84.42 and a 52-week high of $177.20. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $162.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.14.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.21. General Electric had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 7.66%. The business had revenue of $9.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that General Electric will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 11th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. General Electric’s payout ratio is presently 36.72%.

Insider Activity at General Electric

In related news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 45,309 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.82, for a total transaction of $7,377,211.38. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 112,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,391,821.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.