Allianz SE Buys New Holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Allianz SE acquired a new stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 44,501 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $7,481,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cambridge Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $6,145,000. Intrust Bank NA lifted its position in General Electric by 46.8% in the 4th quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 4,937 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $823,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp acquired a new position in General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,350,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in General Electric by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 15,490 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,584,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DnB Asset Management AS increased its holdings in General Electric by 40.2% during the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 405,729 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $67,672,000 after purchasing an additional 116,348 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Stock Down 3.0 %

General Electric stock opened at $199.66 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $201.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $186.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. General Electric has a 1-year low of $133.99 and a 1-year high of $214.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $214.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) 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, analysts predict that General Electric will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. This is a boost from General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. General Electric’s payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report 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 stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of General Electric in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment 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, General Electric presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.31.

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.