WealthShield Partners LLC Has $295,000 Stock Position in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

WealthShield Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,766 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 131 shares during the quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in General Electric were worth $295,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new stake in General Electric during the third quarter worth $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC raised its position in General Electric by 92.0% in the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 167 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

General Electric Price Performance

Shares of GE stock opened at $198.68 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $187.23 and its 200-day moving average is $181.22. General Electric has a 1 year low of $122.48 and a 1 year high of $212.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $213.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.17, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.21.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released its 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 return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 14.31%. Sell-side analysts forecast that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders 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 yield of 0.72%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on GE. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on General Electric in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of General Electric in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.