HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 14,769 Shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE)

HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in General Electric (NYSE:GE) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 452,517 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,769 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in General Electric were worth $75,475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GE. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Electric in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 74.77% of the company’s stock.

General Electric Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:GE opened at $195.21 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $194.56 and its 200 day moving average is $183.58. General Electric has a 1 year low of $131.91 and a 1 year high of $212.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

General Electric (NYSE:GE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.32 earnings per share (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%. On average, research analysts predict that General Electric will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. 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. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on GE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on General Electric from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on General Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on General Electric in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on General Electric from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on General Electric from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, General Electric presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.