PreMarket Prep Stock Of The Day: General Electric

Benzinga's PreMarket Prep airs every morning from 8-9 a.m. ET. During that fast-paced, highly informative hour, traders and investors tune in to get the major news of the day, the catalysts behind those moves and the corresponding price action for the upcoming session.

On any given day, the show will cover at least 20 stocks determined by co-hosts Joel Elconin and Dennis Dick along with producer Spencer Israel.

For those who don't have the time to tune in live or listen to the podcast, Benzinga will highlight one stock that merits further discussion. This analysis is not a buy or sell recommendation.

As the broad market makes historic moves, our stock of the day Tuesday is a historic issue: General Electric Company GE

General Electric's Long History

Founded in 1892, the company has had its up and downs. At one point in the early 2000s it was one of the biggest companies in the world and the top component in the S&P 500 index.

Since the financial crisis, GE been a major underperformer. On March 18, when it bottomed at $5.90, it was within striking distance of its price-adjusted May 2009 low of $5.51.

GE's Underperformance Reaches New Lows 

While the S&P 500 index handsomely appreciated from January 2017 until just recently, General Electric barely participated. After peaking in January 2017 at $30.60, it was only was as high as $13.26 in mid-February as the index was screaming to a new all-time-high.

GE A Laggard On the Way Up, Leader On The Way Down

As is so common in the market, when an issue does not fully participate on the moves to the upside, it more than participates when the market goes into retreat. The S&P 500 index has declined 35.4% since it peaked Feb. 19, but General Electric swooned 54.4%.

GE Moving Forward

As of noon Tuesday, the S&P 500 index is higher by 7.64%. General Electric is outperforming the index by a wide margin, trading higher by 11.46%. Since the issue has been so hard on the way down, it is not all that surprising.

When the coronavirus pandemic abates or comes to an end, the broad market will begin to rebound. History tells us that General Electric will not be leading the way.

Photo by Bubba73 via Wikimedia.