GE Struggles to Show It Still Has Magic Touch

[MULTIZ321]

GE Struggles to Show It Still Has Magic Touch
By Brian Mann/ Business/ National Public Radio/ npr.org

"When General Electric's new CEO John Flannery spoke to investors and analysts last month, he acknowledged things are bad.

"I was forced to confront a lot of sort of deeper questions about this company," he said. "Why do we exist? How do we impact the world for the next 100 years the same way we have for the last 100 years?"

General Electric is one of the most storied corporations in American history, co-founded by Thomas Edison and re-defined by legendary CEO Jack Welch.

For more than a century, GE's products — from dishwashers to MRI machines — changed the way Americans live. But now the company is in deep trouble. Its stock price plummeted over the last year, losing more than 40 percent of its value while the market as a whole soared.

To get a sense for just how shocking the decline at GE is, NPR traveled to Schenectady in upstate New York, headquarters of the company's power and energy division. Five thousand GE employees live and work here and it's a place where magic used to happen...."

President Barack Obama looks at a turbine during a tour in 2011 of the General Electric plant in Schenectady, N.Y., with then GE Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Immelt (left) and plant manager Kevin Sharkey.

Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images


Richard

 

[WinniWoman]

I still love GE appliances.

 

[jehb2]

I had problems with all the high end GE appliances in my new home. Stove was fixed twice. Had to replace the dishwasher and microwave. Very disappointed. Sadly I will not buy GE again.

 

[WinniWoman]

I had problems with all the high end GE appliances in my new home. Stove was fixed twice. Had to replace the dishwasher and microwave. Very disappointed. Sadly I will not buy GE again.

Wow. Has been the opposite for us in our 40 years of marriage! Every single GE appliance we have had has been great. We only buy the ones recommended by Consumer Reports. My washer and dryer, stove and microwave are all GE.

But Kenmore fridge and Bosch dishwasher- again, recommended by Consumer Reports.

Back in the day- my Hotpoint appliances (which are GE) were fantastic. My 30 year old dishwasher was still working when we recently remodeled our kitchen! Never had a single repair!

 

[pagosajim]

I had problems with all the high end GE appliances in my new home. Stove was fixed twice. Had to replace the dishwasher and microwave. Very disappointed. Sadly I will not buy GE again.

+1 for me.

We outfitted our entire kitchen (refrigerator, stove, microwave, dishwasher, trash compactor) with stainless steel GE Profile appliances several years back. With the exception of the stove, they have all systematically failed and been replaced.

We had taken advantage of the GE "friends and family" discount as my brother is an employee. They've lost me as a customer for good.

 

[The Haileys]

LOL ... GE is far more than appliances, and in fact, sold off the appliance division to Haier last year.

It is with great rejoicing that Immelt is gone. He was more into playing politics and parlaying favors to and from the White House to pay attention to bottom lines, as some of the legislation and policies he was supporting actually caused massive losses to several divisions. GE Healthcare is barely treading water these days, as the medical device tax in Obamacare coupled with medical software being defined as a medical device has gutted the division. I guess it's only fair that Flannery, formerly head of Healthcare, is now in charge of the whole kit and kaboodle. Now if they'd just give me my job back ....

 

[pedro47]

GE many, many years ago had a television manufacturing plant in Suffolk, VA. They made the very best televisions in the USA. They made television for Sears, Montgomery Wards, JC Penny, K Mart and over twenty (20) off stores brands. What did GE do; they went to the Far East for cheap labor and parts. True Story.

A company called Sony later became the #1 maker of televisions and electronics products.

GE have been their own worth enemy in my humble opinion.

 

[Passepartout]

It is no longer the company of Thomas Edison or Jack Welch for sure. They sacrificed leadership for cheap labor and quarterly earnings for shareholders, and when the bazillionaire bean counters had wrung out all the profit they could, they bailed out, leaving GE an empty shell. IMO, it's indicative of many, many former -and current- leaders of American industry. Disagree? Hide and watch, but keep your wallet very close.

Jim

 

[Panina]

The older GE appliances, nothing was better, but the last 10 years in my opinion they were bad, almost everything I got had problems, dishwasher, refrigerator and stove. They lost their way with solid appliances and if the rest of the company was the same thus their problems. Hopefully they can find their way to be successful with their current portfolio.

 

[Passepartout]

The older GE appliances, nothing was better, .

I hope that at least to a limited degree, the above is correct. Our 10 year-old Whirlpool wall oven rolled craps, so we just installed a new GE. Stay tuned.

 

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G.E. Reports $9.8 Billion Loss and Discloses S.E.C. Accounting Inquiry
By Steve Lohr/ Business Day/ The New York Times/ nytimes.com

"General Electric reported quarterly results on Wednesday that illustrated how far it has fallen, and the steep hill the company — once a titan of American industry — must climb to turn itself around.

There were no big surprises; those had mostly come earlier.

But in a conference call with analysts, G.E. disclosed that the Securities and Exchange Commission had opened an investigation into the company’s handling of its insurance obligations and how it accounted for certain services contracts. The inquiry was in its “very early stages” and G.E. was “cooperating fully,” said Jamie Miller, the company’s chief financial officer.

Last week, G.E. made a startling announcement that it would take a $6.2 billion charge in the fourth quarter, and set aside $15 billion over seven years to pay for obligations held by its finance unit, mainly on long-term care insurance policies.

Last fall, shortly after taking over as chief executive, John Flannery told investors that G.E.’s big electricity-generation division had badly misjudged the market and produced too many power turbines, warning that it would take a year or more to fix the business...."

G.E.’s stock price over the last year.


Richard

 

[breezez]

It is no longer the company of Thomas Edison or Jack Welch for sure. They sacrificed leadership for cheap labor and quarterly earnings for shareholders, and when the bazillionaire bean counters had wrung out all the profit they could, they bailed out, leaving GE an empty shell. IMO, it's indicative of many, many former -and current- leaders of American industry. Disagree? Hide and watch, but keep your wallet very close.

Jim

Nope the 6.2 Billion Insurance write off this quarter and the 10-15 Billion more they have to set aside for reserves are to fix the crap Mr. Welch bought the assisted living plans... Many of the less than stellar area GE is in were Jack Welches doing also. Jeff Immelt the ran the rest of the company into the ground these last few years.

Hopefully the new CEO can turn the ship around, and get dividend back up!

 

[spirits]

I am married to a wonderful tradesman.....now retired. When we first married, we went to one of the best appliance stores in the city and bought all new GE appliances....only the best for us ( in our budget of course) and we kept them for over 30 years. Then our dishwasher started to age out and we thought we might as well replace all of them...stove, fridge.dishwasher. Our trusty old friends. Went to the new appliance store......old one, the owner retired and the children were in professions.

GE looked so cheap, and tinny. Learned that everything was outsourced to Mexico or China. Cheap parts.....was told to keep our fridge because the old compressor would outlast the new ones. Honest salesman. Learned that the computerized motherboard on a high end American stove would cost 1000 dollars to replace. Husband told me heat and electronics are not a good marriage. Finally found a great Bosch stove with simple controls. Had to go to Miele dishwasher for solid inner components.

We went to Japanese import cars many years ago...I drive an Acura and husband drives a Lexus because American cars....he was a GM man all his life....looked cheap and flimsy.

I do not want to get into politics......and Canada is not a huge manufacturing giant.....but it pained me to know that the once mighty American product behemoth was thrown on the dustheap of history and not the backbone of giving people a product they could trust. A certain politician's cry resonated with many many people who were unhappy about losing a way of life that used to mean something.

I certainly hope GE and other former great companies can regain a new purpose and reinvent themselves in a way that represents quality.

 

[Talent312]

The only way GE and other legacy industrials will survive and prosper is by adapting to how people want to live in the second half of this century with devices that are reliable and affordable. This means innovative robotics, automation, and wireless controls. Resting on their laurels will leave them in the dustbin of history.

It's one thing to say, "We make Alexa enabled products," but another to make products that think for themselves, intuitively know we need, and get it done. It may sound like Sci-Fi, but IMHO, that is the future technological wave.
.

 

[Ironwood]

GM will be broken up! The sum of it's parts are more valuable than the whole which the market has punished for good reason.

 

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General Electric's Slow Demise
By Suzanne O'Halloran/ Industrials/ Fox Business/ foxbusiness.com

"More concerns are rising over the future of General Electric (NYSE:GE) which is currently trading between the $14-to-$15 range. Barron’s weekend cover story titled ‘General Electric’s Dim Prospects’ added fuel to the fire predicting the shares could fall another 10%. Over the past 12-months, the stock has lost 50% of its value. FOX Business takes a historical look at what went wrong at GE...."

Neutron Jack Welch is going nuclear over GE meltdown


Richard

 

[The Haileys]

Annnnd GE is off the DOW.
Like we didn't see this coming a mile away ....


General Electric gets booted from the Dow

For the first time in 110 years, General Electric will not be a member of the elite Dow Jones Industrial Average.
S&P Dow Jones Indices announced on Tuesday that the iconic maker of light bulbs and jet engines will be replaced in the 30-stock index by Walgreens Boots Alliance.

GE (GE) was an original member of the Dow in 1896 and has been in it continuously since November 7, 1907.

Being ousted from the Dow is the latest indignity for GE, which is dealing with a serious cash crisis caused by years of bad deals. GE has replaced its CEO, slashed thousands of jobs and cut its coveted stock dividend in half.

Last year, GE was the worst-performing stock in the Dow, losing almost half of its value. GE is down by another 25% this year.

 

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General Electric and Its Real Value
By Grant Gigliotti/ Deep Value/ Seeking Alpha/ seekingalpha.com

"Summary
The General Electric brand might still give feelings of trust and quality, but its stock has lost its credibility and was recently removed from the DOW.

The company has nearly double the amount of debt than equity.

The market still has GE at a premium price.

GE continues to give the illusion of stability through increasing dividends even though its payout ratio is not sustainable.

Factual evidence tells about the real value vs. stock price.

General Electric (GE) has been a symbol of a solid company for over a century. It was the last original member of the Dow Jones industrial average but was recently removed from the blue-chip index and replaced by Walgreens (NASDAQ:WBA). The stock can be found in countless mutual funds and held as an individual, consistent, dividend-paying stock that many common investors are using to help retire on. But this article will reveal the facts of a fundamentally poorly performing company that is using its impressive dividend as a way to keep investors believing that the company is healthy. Meanwhile, it's a risky and unpredictable business that can't sustain its dividend payout ratio...."

Richard

 

[littlestar]

I have had to replace my GE microwave after 18 months of use and my GE electric stove is making weird high hum noises when I use the oven. No more GE for me. Downsized themselves into crap like a lot of public companies have done - while the high ups get a big fat bonus for doing it.

 

[The Haileys]

I have had to replace my GE microwave after 18 months of use and my GE electric stove is making weird high hum noises when I use the oven. No more GE for me. Downsized themselves into crap like a lot of public companies have done - while the high ups get a big fat bonus for doing it.

GE sold off its appliance division to Haier two years ago.

 

[bbodb1]

I've never understood the positive view on Jack Welch - he of the annual cut the lowest 10% performers of your staff. How do you honestly and correctly identify the lowest performing 10% of your staff without invoking Goodhart's Law? I can only imagine the cutthroat environment that Welch fostered within GE with this approach but even more damming is the fact that if you're having constantly fire a portion of your staff, you're not doing due diligence in identifying talent before it gets in the door. Not to mention how much time and resources were expended in these efforts..

 

[The Haileys]

Big news coming from GE today. Visit the Investor Relations page at ge.com for details.

 

[MULTIZ321]

A Simpler GE. What It Means for Investors
By Leia Klingel/ Industrials/ Fox Business/ Markets/ foxbusiness.com

"General Electric unveiled the details of its strategic review on Tuesday. GE will become a simpler company focused on aviation, power and renewables. GE Healthcare and Baker Hughes will be spun off.

For dividend investors, unfortunately, a cut is likley on the horizon.

GE will make GE Healthcare a standalone company over the next 12-18 months. This separation starts “immediately,” GE CEO John Flannery said during a conference call discussing the company’s strategic review. The company will also separate Baker Hughes over the next two to three years.

“Today marks the emergence of a new GE,” Flannery said during the call, adding, “This is a turnaround strategy.”...."

Richard

 

[bluehende]

I've never understood the positive view on Jack Welch - he of the annual cut the lowest 10% performers of your staff. How do you honestly and correctly identify the lowest performing 10% of your staff without invoking Goodhart's Law? I can only imagine the cutthroat environment that Welch fostered within GE with this approach but even more damming is the fact that if you're having constantly fire a portion of your staff, you're not doing due diligence in identifying talent before it gets in the door. Not to mention how much time and resources were expended in these efforts..

And more important is who would go work for them. As a newcomer you know you don't have the experience and political connections to be highly rated.