General Electric Company Earnings: Third Straight Quarter of Rising Profit

Despite a decrease in revenue, General Electric Company's (NYSE: GE) profit increased. What's behind the company's falling revenue? Let's first dig into the numbers. Then we can look a bit deeper and see what steps you can take.

Earnings and Revenue:
Wall Street watched as General Electric Company topped expectations with its latest EPS and revenue figures. The company reported EPS of 34 cents/share versus the 32 cents/share estimate and revenues of $35.6 billion versus the $34.72 billion estimate. Revenue fell 4.9% from the year-ago quarter.

The company has now seen three quarters in a row of rising net income. General Electric Company saw falling revenues last quarter after a rise the quarter before. Revenue climbed 5% to $38.45 billion in the first quarter from the year earlier.

Income:
For the year, General Electric Company reported net income of $1.29 per share. The company trumped analyst projections of $1.22 by 5.7%. According to the reported number, the company's income rose 23.4% from last year's levels.

Conference Call:
The conference call for second quarter earnings can be accessed here.

Official Comment:
"GE Capital's portfolio transformation is ahead of schedule. Consumer and Commercial Lending and Leasing (CLL) led with earnings growth of 57% and more than 100%, respectively. We continue to see strong demand for credit with CLL new volume originations at $10.8 billion for the quarter, up 33% from prior year." "With our fifth-consecutive quarter of double-digit earnings growth, we continue to execute in a volatile environment," GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt said. "We posted solid overall operating earnings growth of 18%, with strong contributions from GE Capital, Healthcare, Transportation, Aviation, and Oil & Gas. GE's backlog grew to a record high of $189 billion. Total infrastructure orders were up 24%, reflecting robust strength in equipment orders, up 33%, and service orders up 16%."

Industry:
General Electric Company is in the diversified operations industry. That industry is currently enjoying price/earnings growth of 1.2%. The company's EPS compares unfavorably with its industry's estimated average of $8.27.

What to Do Next:
Now that you've gotten a round up of General Electric Company's latest numbers, you can make a better-informed decision about whether to buy, sell or hold those shares. Whatever you do, be sure to visit us before the company's next earnings release for a full preview.

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