Earnings Previews: General Electric, GE HealthCare, 3M

Last week, the company said it plans to form a new joint venture between its China-based subsidiary and Sinopharm, China’s state-controlled medical device maker. GE and Sinopharm have done business together for 30 years. The new agreement will focus on “non-premium CT and general imaging ultrasound solutions” for the primary care and rural domestic market.

The number of analysts covering the stock has risen from two in January to 10, and seven of those brokerages have a Buy or Strong Buy rating. There are also three Hold ratings. At a share price of around $82.70, the implied upside based on a median price target of $92.00 is 11.2%. At the high target of $97.00, the upside potential is 17.3%.

Analysts are forecasting first-quarter revenue of $4.79 billion, up 1.7% sequentially. EPS is expected to come in at $0.87, or 2.3% higher sequentially. For the full 2023 fiscal year, EPS are forecast at $3.74.

GE Healthcare stock trades at 22.1 times expected 2023 EPS, 19.3 times estimated 2024 earnings of $4.28 and 16.9 times estimated 2025 earnings of $4.90 per share. The stock’s year-to-date range is $53.00 to $87.83, and the company has initiated an annual dividend of $0.12 (yield of 0.15%).

3M

Over the past 12 months, shares of 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) have tumbled by 22%. 3M was among our Dogs of the Dow for 2023, one of 10 Dow stocks paying the highest dividend, largely as a result of a falling share price. The stock price has dropped about 13.4% so far in 2023. The stock is one of the index’s three worst performers for both the past 12 months and for the year to date.

If there is any good news for the company, it is the $10.3 billion settlement it has reached with U.S. towns and cities over contaminated drinking water supplies. The not-so-good news is that similar litigation is still in the works.

Analyst sentiment reflects the company’s woes. Of 19 brokerages covering the stock, 15 have a Hold rating. There are no Buy or Strong Buy ratings, and 4 Sell or Strong Sell ratings. At a per-share price of around $104.00, the stock is trading at its median price target. At the high target of $161.00, the upside potential is 54.8%.

The consensus revenue estimate for the first quarter is $7.88 billion, down 1.8% sequentially and down 9.4% year over year. Adjusted EPS are forecast at $1.76, a sequential decline of 10.7%, and a year-over-year decline of 29.0%. For the full 2023 fiscal year, analysts are looking for EPS to tumble by 14.7% to $8.62 on a revenue decline of 6.8% to $31.93 billion, down 6.7%.

3M stock trades at 12.1 times expected 2023 EPS, 10.8 times estimated 2024 earnings of $9.58 and 10.0 times estimated 2025 earnings of $10.39 per share. The 52-week range is $92.38 to $152.30, and 3M pays an annual dividend of $6.00 (yield of 5.75%). Total shareholder return for the past 12 months was negative 18.55%.

Originally published at 24/7 Wall St.

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