Alerus Financial NA Reduces Stock Holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Alerus Financial NA decreased its stake in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,575 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,622 shares during the quarter. Alerus Financial NA’s holdings in General Electric were worth $6,601,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its position in General Electric by 133.3% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 147 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in General Electric during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in General Electric during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in General Electric in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Stock Performance

NYSE:GE opened at $206.11 on Friday. General Electric has a 1 year low of $133.99 and a 1 year high of $214.21. 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 has a market capitalization of $221.21 billion, a PE ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $201.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.12.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.27. General Electric had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 14.31%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that General Electric will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 24.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GE. UBS Group lifted their price target on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of General Electric from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of General Electric in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.31.

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.