Barclays named General Electric stock a "top pick"
General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) is sliding today, off 1.1% at $10.28, failing to gain traction after a bull note from Barclays. The analyst named the energy stock as a "top pick," citing the company's free cash flow, which is set for material improvement in the next two years.
While GE is sliding from its Nov. 24 eight-month peak of $10.85, several layers of support are still on standby, including the equity's 10- and 20-day moving averages. The security hasn't yet caught up to its pre-pandemic levels above the $12 mark, though it has almost doubled off its mid-May low of $5.48.
Options bulls have tried to capitalize on this recent surge, per GE's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 4.45 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which sits higher than 99% of readings from the past year. This indicates long calls are being picked up at a much quicker-than-usual clip.
Analyst sentiment has been quite positive, too. Of the 12 in coverage, eight call GE a "strong buy," while the remaining four say "hold." The 12-month consensus price target of $9.46, meanwhile, is a 7.1% discount to current levels.