Getting your player ready...
GE’s first-quarter earnings fell 36 percent as profits tumbled at its troubled finance arm, but the results beat Wall Street forecasts in a glimmer of good news for the struggling company.
While GE Capital remains a major drag on the conglomerate’s profits, GE’s strategy of weathering the economic slowdown by relying on its big industrial businesses appears to be paying off, at least for now. GE reported net income of $2.74 billion, or 26 cents per share, after paying preferred dividends. That was down from $4.30 billion, or 43 cents per share, a year earlier. Earnings from continuing operations, however, surpassed Wall Street expectations of 21 cents per share — coming in at 26 cents.
