General Electric (NYSE: GE) fourth-quarter earnings missed analyst estimates on the bottom line but the company’s revenue remained strong.
GE also announced a $1.5-billion settlement in principle with the Department of Justice for its investigation of the now defunct subprime mortgage business WMC.
Earnings per Share came in at 17 cents, compared to 22 cents expected by analysts. Revenue was $33.28 billion, as opposed to the $32.6 billion expected.
According to CEO Larry Culp, "Our strategy is clear: de-leverage our balance sheet and strengthen our businesses, starting with Power.
"We have more work to do, but I’m encouraged by the changes we’re making to strengthen GE and create value."
The company’s struggling power business saw further year over year declines, with revenues falling 25%. GE said the power unit "was negatively impacted by continued execution and operational issues."
GE’s units of aviation, healthcare and Baker Hughes oil and gas all saw profits rise in the fourth-quarter – although both the healthcare and Baker Hughes businesses are set be spun off. The aviation business posted revenue of $8.5 billion, a jump of 21% over the fourth quarter last year.
Last year, GE Capital sold off $15 billion in assets and paid down $21 billion in debt. The insurance portfolio ended the fourth-quarter with $124 billion of assets. GE also announced a $1.5-billion settlement in principle with the Justice Department for the investigation into GE’s now defunct WMC mortgage business.
Shares in Thomas Edison’s old company gained 73 cents, or 8%, Thursday morning to $9.83
