Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 1,415,599 Shares of GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE:GEV)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its stake in GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE:GEV) by 71.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 563,092 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,415,599 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of GE Vernova worth $185,218,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Family Legacy Inc. grew its stake in shares of GE Vernova by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. Family Legacy Inc. now owns 5,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,903,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the period. Cannell & Spears LLC bought a new stake in GE Vernova during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in GE Vernova by 206.5% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 141 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE bought a new position in GE Vernova in the fourth quarter worth approximately $123,157,000. Finally, AIA Group Ltd purchased a new position in shares of GE Vernova during the 4th quarter worth $4,324,000.

GE Vernova Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE GEV opened at $315.55 on Wednesday. GE Vernova Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.00 and a 12-month high of $447.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $341.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $324.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.06 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.75.

GE Vernova (NYSE:GEV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.57). The company had revenue of $10.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.70 billion. GE Vernova had a net margin of 4.44% and a return on equity of 6.70%. The business’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that GE Vernova Inc. will post 6.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GE Vernova declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 10th that permits the company to buyback $6.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 6.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on GEV. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on GE Vernova from $453.00 to $445.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. New Street Research set a $380.00 price target on GE Vernova in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Marathon Capitl raised GE Vernova to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays cut their price objective on GE Vernova from $487.00 to $427.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of GE Vernova in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GE Vernova has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $349.54.

GE Vernova Company Profile

GE Vernova LLC, an energy business company, generates electricity. It operates under three segments: Power, Wind, and Electrification. The Power segments generates and sells electricity through hydro, gas, nuclear, and steam power. Wind segment engages in the manufacturing and sale of wind turbine blades; and Electrification segment provides grid solutions, power conversion, solar, and storage solutions.