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Why Is GE (GE) Up 3% Since Last Earnings Report?

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It has been about a month since the last earnings report for General Electric (GE - Free Report) . Shares have added about 3% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is GE due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

General Electric Q4 Earnings Beat, Revenues Miss

General Electric reported fourth-quarter 2022 adjusted earnings (excluding 42 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.24 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.11. The bottom line increased 34.8% year over year.

Total revenues of $21,786 million missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $21,938 million. The top line increased 7% year over year.

Segmental Discussion

Aerospace revenues jumped 25% year over year to $7,615 million in the reported quarter, driven by growth in commercial services due to a significant increase in shop visits, strong spare part sales and favorable prices. Organic revenues rose 26% year over year. Orders grew 26% year over year. Organic orders also increased by the same amount.

Renewable Energy revenues totaled $3,413 million, down 19% year over year. Organically, the same declined 13%. Results were hurt by lower U.S. onshore wind volumes. Orders increased 4% year over year on a reported basis and 7% organically.

The Power segment’s revenues were up 8% year over year to $5,030 million. Organic revenues increased 12%. Higher aero-derivative unit shipments aided the segment’s performance. Orders climbed 26% on a reported basis and 29% organically.

Healthcare revenues in the reported quarter totaled $4,966 million, up 7% year over year. GE completed the separation of its HealthCare business, launching GE HealthCare on Jan 3, 2023.

Margin Profile

In the quarter under review, General Electric’s cost of sales ascended 7.9% year over year to $15,467 million. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 10.3% year over year to $3,543 million. Research and development expenses totaled $789 million, reflecting an increase of 11.9%.

General Electric’s adjusted profit was $2,162 million, up 37% year over year. The margin in the quarter was 10.3%, up 220 basis points (bps).

On a reported basis, the Aerospace segment reported a profit of $1,434 million, up 18% year over year. The healthcare segment profit was $804 million, up 6% year over year. The Renewable Energy segment incurred a loss of $454 million compared with a loss of $312 million in the year-ago quarter. The Power segment reported a profit of $692 million.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

Exiting the fourth quarter, General Electric had cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash of $17,262 million compared with $15,770 million at the end of December 2021. The company’s long-term borrowings were $28,593 million at the end of the third quarter compared with $30,824 million at the end of December 2021.

Adjusted free cash flow in the reported quarter was $4,286 million, down 15.6% year over year.
General Electric repurchased around 4.2 million shares for $0.3 billion during the fourth quarter.

Outlook

General Electric expects organic revenues to grow in the high-single-digit growth range for 2023 (excludes GE HealthCare). Adjusted earnings are predicted in the band of $1.60-$2.00 per share. The mid-point of the guided range — $1.80 — is short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.61. GE expects a free cash flow of approximately $3.4-$4.2 billion for the ongoing year.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates.

The consensus estimate has shifted -79.08% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, GE has a nice Growth Score of B, though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with a D. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of F on the value side, putting it in the lowest quintile for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. It's no surprise GE has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). We expect a below average return from the stock in the next few months.


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