Blue Trust Inc. Acquires 3,068 Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 59.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,210 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,068 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in General Electric were worth $1,441,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of General Electric by 2,818.1% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,749,560 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,237,930,000 after buying an additional 12,312,648 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in General Electric during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,193,159,000. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 9.9% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 59,100,643 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,373,936,000 after acquiring an additional 5,309,543 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of General Electric by 221.6% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,121,741 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,250,079,000 after purchasing an additional 4,907,530 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Quality Fund GP Ltd. acquired a new stake in General Electric during the 1st quarter worth approximately $385,745,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of General Electric from $120.43 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of General Electric from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on General Electric from $195.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Argus boosted their target price on shares of General Electric from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of General Electric from $148.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, General Electric presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $190.38.

General Electric Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GE traded down $0.52 during trading on Friday, reaching $169.42. The stock had a trading volume of 3,305,648 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,935,916. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $163.24 and its 200 day moving average is $160.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.14. General Electric has a 52 week low of $84.42 and a 52 week high of $177.20. The stock has a market cap of $185.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.21.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last issued its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $9.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. General Electric had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 16.07%. General Electric’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that General Electric will post 4.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 11th. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric

In other General Electric news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 45,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.82, for a total value of $7,377,211.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 112,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,391,821.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

General Electric 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.