At the conference, GE laid out its priorities for 2019. The topmost is to improve its financial position. The company’s decision to sell its biopharma business to Danaher for $21 billion is part of these efforts. GE also reduced its dividend and is undertaking industrial dispositions worth $20 billion. The firm aims to prioritize cash generation in every business.
The second priority is to strengthen its businesses, starting with Power. The business has been facing non-operational headwinds along with execution challenges in terms of project underwriting and cost over-runs. GE plans to take additional actions in 2019 to right-size Power’s footprint.
Also read: GE’s stock soars around 15% on news of Biopharma business sale to Danaher
GE’s initial thoughts for 2019 include an expectation for organic revenue growth in the low to mid-single digit range, and strong performance in Aviation and Renewables. The company expects organic growth in the low to mid-single digit range in Healthcare. Power is expected to be down in a flat to slightly down market.
GE is expected to provide an outlook on March 14, 2019 and the stock is likely to experience some volatility at that time.