⁍ General Electric on Wednesday unexpectedly reported a quarterly profit and a positive cash flow.
⁍ The company’s shares, which have fallen about 40% since the beginning of 2020, were up about 10.3% at $7.83 in morning trading.
⁍ GE is cutting $2 billion in costs and aiming to generate $3 billion in cash savings.
– General Electric posted a surprise quarterly profit Wednesday, sending its shares up 10%. The company’s shares, which have fallen about 40% since the beginning of 2020, were up about 40% since the beginning of 2020, per Reuters. “We are managing through a still-difficult environment with better operational execution across our businesses,” said Chief Executive Lawrence Culp. Culp is trying to turn around the company by improving free cash flow and cutting debt. However, the coronavirus pandemic has hit GE’s aviation unit, usually the company’s most profitable and most cash-generative segment. In response to the pandemic-induced turmoil, GE is cutting $2 billion in costs and aiming to generate $3 billion in cash savings. GE said it expects industrial free cash flow to be at least $2.5 billion in the fourth quarter and positive in 2021. Adjusted profit for the quarter came in at 6 cents per share compared with Refinitiv’s average analyst estimate of a loss of 4 cents per share. Revenue at both power and renewable energy businesses recovered from the last quarter even as orders saw a double-digit dip. Analysts at Gordon Haskett Research Advisors said the earnings report would “reinforce the messaging that GE has fundamentally bottomed.” However, a resurgence in new COVID-19 cases has raised the risk of prolonging the downturn in the aviation industry, which has led to a sharp cutback in maintenance spending by airlines, hitting both large and small suppliers. This has compounded the troubles at GE’s aviation unit, which makes engines for Boeing’s 737 MAX planes.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-general-electric-results/ges-shares-soar-as-earnings-recover-from-pandemic-lows-idUSKBN27D1FY