General Electric (NYSE:GE) fell short of Wall Street's expectations on by a wide margin on Friday as profits were weighed down by restructuring costs, even as revenue grew.
It's the first earnings report under CEO John Flannery, who replaced Jeff Immelt in August, and has been dismissed in some circles as a “throwaway” quarter.
Investors are looking to November, when the company provides more detail about its expectations as it works to reshape its business.
After stripping out restructuring charges, GE earned 29 cents per share from continuing operations in the third quarter, down 9% from the same period a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn 49 cents per share.
GE revenue rose 14% to $33.47 billion, which beat analysts' expectations of $32.56 billion.
The company cut its guidance for the year, lowering expectations for its 2017 adjusted earnings per share to a range of $1.05-$1.10, from $1.60-$1.70.
GE's performance was weighed down heavily by its power business, which saw profits decline 51% to $611 million, from $1.3 billion at the same time last year.
The company also posted a loss at its oil and gas business. It swung to a loss of $36 million from a profit of $353 million a year ago.
GE shares opened Friday down $1.13, or 4.8%, to $22.45, below its 52-week trading gulch of $22.83, and a far cry from its 52-week peak of $32.83.
