Marino Stram & Associates LLC Takes Position in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Marino Stram & Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,673 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in General Electric by 29.3% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,311 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,613,000 after purchasing an additional 6,419 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in General Electric by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 261,187 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $33,335,000 after purchasing an additional 28,985 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in General Electric by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 109,332 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $12,087,000 after purchasing an additional 10,722 shares during the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in General Electric by 51,152.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 22,551 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,493,000 after purchasing an additional 22,507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in General Electric in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,846,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GE opened at $156.76 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $158.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.81. General Electric has a fifty-two week low of $76.38 and a fifty-two week high of $158.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $171.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.29.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. General Electric had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 13.95%. The firm had revenue of $19.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.24 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that General Electric will post 3.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is a positive change from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on GE shares. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. TD Cowen raised General Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $175.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on General Electric from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on General Electric from $200.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Electric has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total transaction of $3,195,107.85. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at $8,153,863.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $1,843,615.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 48,339 shares in the company, valued at $6,552,351.45. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total value of $3,195,107.85. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

About General Electric

General Electric Company operates as a high-tech industrial company in Europe, China, Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa. It offers gas and steam turbines, full balance of plant, upgrade, and service solutions, as well as data-leveraging software for power generation, industrial, government, and other customers.