GE Scares Off Investors Not Named Pollyanna
Just when the stock looks as if it’s reached the bottom, there’s a trap door.
Heading backward.
Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg
In what has become something of a trend, General Electric Co. is having a very bad day.
Shares of the troubled industrial conglomerate dropped below the $9 threshold on Friday and at one point had plummeted more than 10 percent to trade at a mere $8.15. GE shares have now declined in eight of the nine sessions since its disastrous third-quarter earnings update. The much-need cash influx promised by GE’s slashing of its dividend was overshadowed by the operating loss and cash-flow woes in its challenged power unit; wishy-washiness on its leverage reduction target; and the disclosure of an expanded SEC investigation into its accounting practices that’s now also drawn the attention of the Justice Department.