[lewdog]

Originally Posted by scho63

Bought 500 GE at $19.94

General Electric in such financial stress that it may soon do the unthinkable: cut its beloved dividend.

John Flannery, GE's new chief executive, is under enormous pressure to restore confidence in a company facing a serious cash crunch and a nosediving stock price. One-third of GE's market value has vanished this year, making it the biggest Dow loser by a long shot.
GE (GE) is holding an investor update on Monday to detail a strategy to stabilize the company by slashing costs and selling off more businesses. Wall Street analysts are bracing for Flannery to announce layoffs and just the second cut to GE's coveted dividend since the Great Depression.
GE confirmed in a statement on Friday that "employee reductions," some of which have already begun, are part of a previously-announced plan to cut costs by $3 billion.
After GE reported awful results last month, Flannery said the dividend remains a "priority," but he didn't rule out a reduction.
The problem is GE isn't generating enough cash to cover dividend payouts promised to shareholders. It's a stunning development given GE's iconic status and a sprawling business that makes everything from jet engines and light bulbs to MRI machines.
GE is one of America's most widely-held stocks, making a decision to cut the dividend even tougher. Countless shareholders, including retirees, have come to rely on the quarterly dividend payments.
"Retail investors have stuck with GE through many, many years of underperformance simply because they've counted on that dividend," said John Inch, a Deutsche Bank analyst with a "sell" rating on GE.
"If you cut that dividend, all of a sudden that confidence is shaken," Inch said.
GE says it's been paying its dividend for more than a century, "proving its strength and reliability." The first dividend cut occurred in 1938 in the midst of the Great Depression.

http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/12/inve...ill/index.html