GE

The General Electric Company, or GE, NYSE: GE is a multinational technology and services company. Going into 2005, it was the world's largest corporation in terms of market cap ([1]). However, on the back of high oil prices, ExxonMobil has outranked GE for most of 2005. It should not be confused with The General Electric Company plc, which was renamed Marconi plc in 1999.

In the 1960s, peculiarities in U.S. tax laws and accounting practices made it fashionable to assemble conglomerates. GE, which was a conglomerate long before the term was coined, is one of the very few corporations to achieve great success with this kind of organization.

History
In 1876, Thomas Alva Edison opened a new laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Out of the laboratory was to come perhaps the most famous invention of all—a successful development of the incandescent electric lamp. By 1890, Edison had organized his various businesses into the Edison General Electric Company.

In 1879, Elihu Thomson and E. J. Houston formed the rival Thomson-Houston Company. It merged with various companies and was later led by Charles A. Coffin, a former shoe manufacturer from Lynn, Massachusetts.

Mergers with competitors and the patent rights owned by each company put them into dominant positions in the electrical industry. As businesses expanded, it became increasingly difficult for either company to produce complete electrical installations relying solely on their own technology. In 1892, these two major companies combined to form the General Electric Company, with its headquarters in Schenectady, New York.

In 1896, General Electric was one of the original 12 companies listed on the newly-formed Dow Jones Industrial Average. GE is the only one that remains today.

The Radio Corporation of America (RCA) was founded by GE and AT&T in 1919 to further international radio.

General Electric was one of the eight major computer companies (with IBM - the largest, Burroughs, Scientific Data Systems, Control Data Corporation, Honeywell, RCA and UNIVAC) through most of the 1960s. GE had an extensive line of general purpose and special purpose computers. Among them were the GE 215, GE 225, GE 235 and GE 600 series general purpose computers, the GE 4010, GE 4020, and GE 4060 real time process control computers, and the Datanet 30 message switching computer. A Datanet 600 computer was designed, but never sold. It has been said that GE got into the computer manufacturing business because in the 1950's they were the largest user of computers outside of the Federal Government. In 1970 GE sold its computer division to Honeywell.

In 1986, GE re-acquired RCA, primarily for the NBC television network. The rest was sold to various companies, including Bertelsmann AG and Thomson.

In 2004, GE bought from Vivendi Universal the television and movie assets and became the third largest media conglomerate in the world. The new company was named NBC Universal. Also in 2004, GE completed the spinoff of most of its life and mortgage insurance assets into an independent company, Genworth Financial, based in Richmond, Virginia. In that same year, GE also acquired the credit card unit of the department store Dillard's for $1.25 billion.

In 2005, General Electric bought the financial assets of the Canadian airplane manufacturer Bombardier for $1.4 billion [2]

Today
GE is an enormous multinational industrial company headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut. GE describes itself as composed of a number of primary business units or "businesses." Each "business" is itself a vast enterprise, any of which would, if separate, rank in the Fortune 500 by itself. The list of GE businesses varies over time as the result of acquisitions, disposals and reorganizations.

GE subsidiaries
Main article: List of assets owned by General Electric
Access Distribution
GE Advanced Materials
GE Capital IT Solutions
GE Capital Rail Services
GECAS
GE Commercial Finance
GE Consumer & Industrial
GE Consumer Finance
GE Energy
GE Engine Services, Inc.
GE Equipment Services
GE Fanuc Automation North America, Inc.
GE Financial Assurance Holdings, Inc.
GE Franchise Finance Corporation
GE Global Research
GE Healthcare
GE Infrastructure
GE Insurance
GE Money
GE Osmonics
GE SeaCo SRL
GE Security
GE Small Business Finance Corporation
GE Supply
GE Transportation
General Electric Mortgage Insurance Corporation
Global Nuclear Fuel - Japan Co., Ltd.
HPSC, Inc.
Instrumentarium Corporation
MRA Systems, Inc.
NBC Universal, Inc.
Transport International Pool Inc.
WMC Mortgage Corp.
Through these businesses, GE participates in a wide variety of markets including the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, lighting, industrial automation, medical imaging equipment, motors, railway locomotives, aircraft jet engines, aviation services and materials such as plastics, silicones and abrasives. It was co-founder and is 80% owner (with Vivendi Universal) of NBC Universal, the National Broadcasting Company. As GE Commercial Finance, GE Consumer Finance, GE Equipment Services, and GE Insurance it offers a range of financial services as well. It has a presence in over 100 countries.

Interestingly, over half of GE's revenue is derived from financial services, ostensibly making it a financial company with a manufacturing arm. It is also one of the largest lenders in countries other than the United States, such as Japan. Even though the first wave of conglomerates (such as ITT, Ling-Temco-Vought, Tenneco, etc) fell by the wayside by the mid-1980s, in the late 1990s, another wave (consisting of Westinghouse, Tyco, and others) tried and failed to emulate GE's success.

Jack Welch
The CEO from 1981-2001 was Jack Welch, who many regard as one of the premier business managers of his era. Nicknamed "Neutron Jack", he presided over a 28-fold increase in earnings (on a 5-fold increase in revenue) with his policy (referred to by detractors as "rank and yank") of sacking the worst performing 10% of his staff every year. In running GE's many diverse businesses he maintained a policy of only keeping those businesses which were #1 or #2 within their respective industries. In 1987, GE was the United States' second largest nuclear power company and third largest producer of nuclear weapons systems. Jack Welch introduced the use of the six sigma quality system, originally developed at Motorola, within GE.

Comments
The company's market capitalization ([3]) is almost $100 billion higher than that of Microsoft ([4]).
In 2004 GE was named number one company for employers and employees on the Forbes 500 Global Player list.

Management
Job: name, age, pay

CEO: Jeff Immelt, 48, $7.66M
CFO: Keith S. Sherin, 45
CIO: Gary M. Reiner
Vice Chairman: Dennis Dammerman, 58, $11.49M
Vice Chairman: Robert Charles Wright, 60, $11.05M

Conference calls
January 21, 2005 - Earnings Conference Call (Q4 2004) (press release and slides) (audio)
Oct 8, 2004 - Earnings Conference Call (Q3 2004) (press release and slides) (audio)

Analyst coverage
See Yahoo! analyst converage

Germanotta, Jeffrey (William Blair & Company, L.L.C.)
Cornell, Robert (Lehman Brothers)
Parent, Nicole (Credit Suisse First Boston)
Dray, Deane (Goldman Sachs)

Financials
SEC filings including 10-k

Revenue ([5]): $152.4 billion
Employees (2004): 315,000

The
General Electric Company, ge or GE, NYSE: GE is a multinational technology and services parts company.
Going into company 2005, it was the world's largest corporation in ge terms of market cap ([1]). However, on the back of high oil prices, ExxonMobil has parts outranked GE for most of 2005. It should not be confused with profile The General Electric Company plc, which ge was renamed ge Marconi plc in 1999.

In ge the 1960s, peculiarities in U.S. ge tax laws water and accounting practices made it fashionable to dishwasher ge
assemble conglomerates. cleaner GE, which was a antique conglomerate long before the term was coined, ge is one of the
ge very few corporations to achieve great success with this kind of
closeouts organization.

ge gas range

History
In 1876, Thomas Alva Edison opened refrigerator a new laboratory ge in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Out of
the laboratory was telephone to come perhaps the most famous invention appliance of all—a successful development of stoves
the incandescent
electric lamp. By ge 1890,
Edison had
organized his various businesses into the reviews Edison General Electric Company.

In 1879, Elihu Thomson and smart E. J. Houston
formed the rival Thomson-Houston Company. It merged restated with
zoneline various companies and was later led by Charles A. Coffin, a former shoe manufacturer from ge Lynn, Massachusetts.

Mergers with competitors and profile the patent rights ge owned ge ge by each company put them into dominant positions in remote the electrical industry. As parts businesses expanded, it became increasingly difficult for either
company to produce complete electrical installations relying solely on their own repair technology. ge In 1892,
these two major companies callaway combined to form the General repair Electric Company, with its headquarters in Schenectady, New York.

In 1896, General Electric was one of the original 12 companies listed on the newly-formed Dow range Jones Industrial Average. GE is the only one that remains today.

The Radio Corporation of America (RCA) was founded ge by GE and epm AT&T
in 1919 to further international radio.

General Electric was one of the eight major computer companies (
with
fuseless IBM - refrigerator the largest, Burroughs, co Scientific Data Systems, Control Data Corporation, Honeywell, card RCA and 7300 control UNIVAC) through ge most of deck the 1960s. refrigerator GE had an extensive line of general purpose and special purpose computers.
zoneline Among them
were the GE ge 215, GE 225, cooktop GE 235 credit ge and GE 600 series general purpose transformers computers, the GE 4010, GE 4020, and industrial GE 4060 real dishwasher time process control ge computers, and the Datanet 30 message switching computer. A Datanet 600 transformer computer cordless was
designed, je2160 but never driver sold. It has been said that GE got into the computer manufacturing harmony sealants business ge because in the 1950's they were cooktop the largest
user of computers outside of spacemaker the headset microwave Federal Government. In 1970 home GE sold control its computer division to Honeywell.

commercial parts In 1986, GE re-acquired RCA, primarily for the NBC credit television network. The rest was sold to ge fan various companies, including Bertelsmann AG and Thomson.

In 2004, ge GE bought from Vivendi Universal the
television and movie assets and became the third largest media conglomerate in the world. The new company was named NBC Universal. Also in 2004, GE completed the ge spinoff of most of its
life electric and mortgage insurance assets into an independent water company, Genworth Financial, based in
Richmond, Virginia. In that same
year, remote GE also acquired ges the credit
card unit of the department store Dillard's for $1.ge 25 billion.

In codes 2005, General Electric bought the financial assets of the ge Canadian ge airplane manufacturer Bombardier for range $1.4 billion [2]

Today
GE is an enormous multinational industrial company headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut. GE describes itself
as generator composed of a number of
primary picture business units or
codes careers "businesses.softeners " Each "business" card is itself a vast enterprise, any of which insurance would, if separate,

rank in the Fortune 500 by itself. The list of GE businesses varies ge over time as ges the result of acquisitions, ge disposals and reorganizations.

GE subsidiaries
Main article: List of assets owned
by General Electric
Access Distribution
GE Advanced Materials
GE Capital IT Solutions
GE ge Capital Rail Services
GECAS
GE Commercial Finance
GE Consumer & ge Industrial
GE Consumer Finance
GE Energy
ge microwave GE combination Engine Services, Inc.
GE
Equipment ge Services
GE Fanuc Automation North America, Inc.
GE Financial Assurance Holdings, Inc.
GE ge Franchise Finance Corporation
GE Global Research
GE Healthcare
GE Infrastructure
GE Insurance
GE Money
GE Osmonics
GE
infrastructure SeaCo
SRL
GE insurance Security
GE Small ge trim Business Finance Corporation
GE ge Supply
potscrubber GE Transportation
ge owners General Electric Mortgage ge Insurance remote Corporation
Global Nuclear lightbulbs Fuel - Japan Co., Ltd.
HPSC, ge Inc.
Instrumentarium profile Corporation
MRA
ge Systems, Inc.
range NBC ge ge Universal, Inc.
Transport International Pool insurance Inc.
WMC Mortgage Corp.
Through these systems businesses, GE participates in a wide variety of markets including the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, lighting, industrial automation, medical imaging equipment, motors, railway locomotives, aircraft ge jet engines, ge
aviation services washer and materials such ge as plastics, silicones and abrasives. It was co-founder and is 80% owner (with Vivendi Universal)
of NBC Universal, the National Broadcasting Company. As GE ge Commercial Finance, GE Consumer gesch
Finance, GE Equipment keysafe 640 Services, and GE Insurance it offers a range mouse of financial services as well. It has a presence in over motor 100 countries.

Interestingly, over half laundry of GE's revenue is derived from financial services, ostensibly making it a financial ge company with
a manufacturing arm. ge microwave It ge is also one of the largest lenders
in countries spacemaker other than
replacement the United States,
page such as Japan. Even ge though the water first wave of ge conglomerates (such property as ITT, Ling- Temco- Vought, Tenneco, etc) numbers fell by the wayside by the ovens mid-1980s, in the late 1990s, another wave (capacitor consisting of Westinghouse, Tyco, and others) tried and failed to emulate GE's success.

Jack Welch
The CEO from
1981-ge
2001 ge was Jack Welch, universal who many regard as one of the premier ge business managers of his era. Nicknamed "Neutron Jack", he presided over a kit 28-
spacemaker profile fold increase in earnings (on a 5-fold gas increase in revenue) with his policy (referred to by detractors
as "rank universal and yank") of sacking
the worst performing 10% of his staff solutions every year. In running GE's many diverse businesses he maintained a policy

of only keeping those
businesses ge which ge were
#1 or #2 within
their washing hoods sensing manual respective industries. In 1987, GE was the United States' second largest nuclear power casualty company and third products largest producer of earnings nuclear weapons systems. Jack
Welch introduced the use consumer of the six sigma quality system, wind originally developed at Motorola, within GE.

Comments
The company's market capitalization ([3]) is almost $100 polymer billion higher than that of Microsoft ( [4]).
In ge manual 2004 GE was named number one company for employers and parts employees weathermate on the Forbes 500 Global Player
list.

Management
Job: name, age, pay

CEO: Jeff Immelt, 48, $7.electronics
66M
CFO: Keith ge S. Sherin, 45
500 CIO: ge Gary M. Reiner
Vice Chairman: Dennis Dammerman, 58,
$11.49M
Vice Chairman: Robert Charles Wright, 60, $11.05M

Conference calls
January filter 21, 2005 - 18 Earnings Conference Call (Q4 2004) (press release ge
ge and
slides) (audio)
Oct 8, 2004 -
Earnings
capital Conference Call (Q3 ptac 2004) (press release and slides) (ge audio)

Analyst coverage
See Yahoo! analyst
converage

Germanotta, Jeffrey (William Blair & Company, L.L.C.)
Cornell, Robert (Lehman washer Brothers)
Parent, Nicole (Credit Suisse First Boston)
Dray, Deane (Goldman Sachs)

Financials
SEC filings including ge 10-k

Revenue ([5]): $152.4 shapes ge billion
Employees (2004): credit 315,000
capital

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