GE will spin off its healthcare and energy businesses, and the remaining core of the century-old company founded by Thomas Edison will focus on aviation.
General Electric will spin off GE Healthcare in early 2023, with the parent company expecting to retain a 19.9 percent stake, the statement said. “We have a responsibility to move with speed to shape the future of flight, advance precision health and lead the energy transition,” said company chairman and chief executive Lawrence Culp, who will retain a leadership role in the new aviation group.
The company on Tuesday restated its goal of reducing the debt load by $75 billion from the end of 2018 and the end of 2021.Investors embraced the news. On Wall Street, GE shares were up nearly four percent at midday. “Upon the separation of GE Healthcare, we would view GE as less diversified,” the ratings agency said, noting that “in the past year, the health care segment has been more resilient.”
Founded at the end of the 19th century by inventor Thomas Edison, General Electric has long been a flagship of American industry, with a sprawling presence in many sectors, from electricity transmission to finance, media and computers.