General Electric slashes Year 2017 Profit Forecast

New York — General Electric slashed its 2017 profit forecast as its new boss grapples with one of the deepest slumps in the beleaguered manufacturer’s history.

The revision underscores the severity of the challenges facing CEO John Flannery, who took over Jeffrey Immelt’s longtime post in August.
Facing hurdles from poor cash flows to slumping power-generation markets, GE is by far the biggest loser on the Dow Jones Industrial Average this year and has seen a quarter of its market value evaporate.
"This was a very challenging quarter," Flannery said in a statement. "While a majority of our businesses had solid earnings performance, this was offset by a decline in Power performance in a difficult market."

The cut is the latest step in what is shaping up to be a dramatic repositioning of GE under its new leadership. Flannery this month welcomed a representative of activist investor Trian Fund Management to GE’s board and announced several management changes. He is seeking deep cost cuts and has said he will consider all options, including portfolio changes.
Adjusted earnings this year are expected to be $1.05 to $1.10 a share, down from a previous range of $1.60 to $1.70 a share, GE said Friday in the statement. Analysts had anticipated $1.54 a share, according to the average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
The shares tumbled 5.1% to $22.37 before the start of regular trading in New York.

Profit Miss

The maker of jet engines and gas turbines reported that adjusted profit decreased 29 cents a share for the third quarter, falling well short of the 50-cent average of analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. GE hasn’t missed estimates by more than half a cent in over nine years.
GE cut $500 million in costs during the quarter, bringing the 2017 total to $1.2 billion, which the company said is ahead of its original plans.
"This is a light-speed version of transformation," said Nicholas Heymann, an analyst with William Blair & Co. "This is a really compressed process."
Industrial operating cash flow, a major focus for investors, was $1.7 billion in the quarter, excluding deal taxes and pension plan funding, GE said.
GE’s liquidity came under scrutiny after the company reported negative $1.6 billion in industrial operating cash flow in the first quarter, about $1 billion worse than the company had anticipated. The measure rebounded modestly in the second quarter.

Management Overhaul

Sales fell 3.5% in GE Power, the world’s largest maker of gas turbines, as profit plummeted by more than half. GE Aviation, which is boosting production on a new jet engine, increased revenue 8.1%.
Flannery announced several top management changes this month, including naming a new chief financial officer. Jamie Miller, the current head of the GE Transportation unit, will assume the CFO role from Jeff Bornstein in the coming weeks.

The new CEO also became chairman this month — earlier than planned — after the surprise retirement of Immelt, who had been slated to stay until year-end.
The appointment of Ed Garden, a founding partner of Trian, to GE’s board this month marked a victory for the activist firm, which had pledged to hold management accountable. Trian, co-founded by Nelson Peltz, became one of GE’s largest shareholders when it took a $2.5 billion stake in 2015.
Flannery will detail his plans to reshape GE at an investor meeting Nov. 13.
Investors are also bracing for a possible dividend cut. Though GE has said the payout remains a top priority, a dividend reduction has already been priced into the stock, Susquehanna derivative strategist Chris Jacobson said in a note.

Bloomberg