Short sellers bet against an American icon: GE

Posted Jun 6th 2008 10:00AM by Douglas McIntyre
Filed under: General Electric (GE), US Airways Group (LCC), United Technologies (UTX)

How the mighty have fallen, at least in the stock market. GE (NYSE: GE) trades near a 52-week low at $31.

Now, short sellers have added insult to injury. The short interest in GE has moved up 11 million to 68.7 million between May 15 and May 30. That percent increase is almost as high as the jump in the short interest at US Air (NYSE: LCC).

The fact that so many shares are bet that GE will fall further is extraordinary. The company still holds one of the best credit ratings of any corporation in the US. Its infrastructure business, the firm's largest division, continues to do remarkably well.

But investors are assuming that GE's industrial, medical and financial operations could have more bad quarters ahead of them.

Shares in rival conglomerate United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) have far outperformed GE during the last year.

That says a mouthful.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Tags: GE, LCC, short selling, shorts, ShortSelling, UTX

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

6-06-2008 @ 10:47AM

gumbo koontz said...

Doug
Dont laugh... GE can buy GM and double revenues.... Toytoa will have no chance...

6-06-2008 @ 11:02AM

Steve in Denver said...

So, lets see. The short studs have bet a little over 1/2 of 1% off all the issued shares of GE on the down side; and this makes news. Damn the internet. It has empowered the biggest crop of nutcases, alarmists and boogeymen than any other communications tool in the history of man. People, grow up!!, or better yet...SELL ALL YOUR GE!!! THE WORLD IS COMING TO AN END, AND GE IS THE FIRST TO GO!!! YOU'RE ALL GONNA DIE IF YOU OWN IT!!! SELL!!!! This'll make it cheaper for me to buy.

6-06-2008 @ 11:37AM

skip said...

Good for you Steve. Your post was Right on! Not that people like Doug will EVER get it!

6-06-2008 @ 1:34PM

Bob Baldwin said...

No, the world isn't coming to an end, and GE isn't about to go under - it's just that many investors, with good reason as I see it, think that the company is being run by a lousy CEO. I'd like to get out, but Jack Welch made me so much money in the 1990's that I'd owe Uncle Sam way too much.

6-06-2008 @ 4:08PM

Mike Rath said...

DM-
Nothing like an inane blog on a Friday afternoon.. I suspect you must have missed your quota for the week

6-06-2008 @ 4:10PM

douglas mcintyre said...

Thank you for your kind comments. The piece was written before the open. If you had been short the shares, GE's (GE) 3.5% drop today would have served you nicely

6-06-2008 @ 4:15PM