GE Reports Higher First-Quarter Profit

BOSTON (April 13) - General Electric Co. reported higher first-quarter earnings on Friday, with strong demand for heavy equipment driving the infrastructure segment, while the GE Plastics business weighed on industrial results.

GE, whose operations range from jet engines to NBC media, said net earnings rose to $4.51 billion, or 44 cents per diluted share, from $4.44 billion, or 42 cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts on average had expected profit of 44 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Revenue came in at $40.2 billion, up 5.7 percent from $38.03 billion a year earlier. Analysts on average had expected $39.76 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.

The strongest profit growth came at GE's Infrastructure business, which sells jet engines, electricity-generating turbines and other heavy industrial equipment. Earnings at that segment increased 28 percent.

Profit at GE's Industrial unit were down 20 percent.

GE Money earnings were up 2 percent.

"GE Money's earnings were tempered by challenges at its U.S. mortgage business," said GE Chief Executive Jeff Immelt, referring to the company's WMC Mortgage business.

GE said it expected to report second-quarter earnings of 52 cents to 54 cents per share from continuing operations. Analysts on average expected 53 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

The world's second-largest company by market valuation, behind Exxon Mobil Corp., GE has counted on the depth and variety of its operations and its large presence outside the United States to keep its profit rising even as the U.S. economy slows.

But GE shares have lagged the major U.S. financial indexes this year. They are down 5.5 percent so far in 2007, while the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average, of which GE is a component, is up 0.7 percent.