Shares of beleaguered General Electric Company (NYSE: GE) dipped by nearly 1 percent on Monday following a downgrade from J.P. Morgan, reversing a gain in early morning trading.
The price target of GE, which has been beset by problems for several years, was slashed from $16 to $14 by JP Morgan analyst Stephen Tusa. He reiterates the underweight rating he has placed since May 2016 and says General Electric failed to “snap back” and has not been able to meet its challenges of beating fundamentals.
[See: 7 of the Best Stocks to Buy for 2018.]
He cites many concerns, including weakness in GE’s balance sheet and bonds.
“In other words, it’s either a steady grind in uncertain markets, with risk that things get more extreme in more volatile capital markets, or it’s a change in structure to try and de-risk, and simplify the portfolio to grow it in a more focused way in the future, and we see a bit of a mix,” he says in the research note.
The last three months, GE stock has plummeted by 27 percent and the company cut its quarterly dividend to 12 cents per share in November, marking the third time that the industrial conglomerate slashed its dividend.
[See: 7 Energy Stocks with High-Powered Dividends.]
The rapid decline in its share value occurred in January as GE said its insurance business, which is part of GE Capital, would take a $6.2 billion charge for the fourth quarter.
Reports from CNBC and Bloomberg in January said the company could be breaking up and selling additional assets.
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General Electric Company (GE) Stock Is Falling Again originally appeared on usnews.com
