General Electric Co.’s stock slumped 2.8% in morning trade Monday, putting it in danger of the lowest close in over two years, after J.P. Morgan analyst C. Stephen Tusa the recent management changes were a “clear negative” for the industrial conglomerate. The stock was the biggest percentage decliner in the Dow Jones Industrial Average , with the price decline of 69 cents shaving about 5 points off the price of the Dow, which was down 1 point. GE said late Friday that Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Bornstein will be succeeded by Jamie Miller, effective Nov. 1. The company also announced the retirement of its vice chairs, and said Monday that it elected the CIO of activist investor Trian Fund Management to its board. “While not an implausible event, we believe the management changes at GE reinforce our view that core fundamental challenges are worse than consensus is currently discounting, with a new wrinkle added around possible outcomes from events this Fall, almost none of which are positive,” Tusa wrote in a note to clients. He reiterated his underweight rating on GE. The stock, on track to close at the lowest level since Aug. 25, 2015, has plunged 25% year to date, while the Dow has climbed 15%.
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