General Electric Co.’s stock dropped 2.3% in morning trade, and was the biggest decliner within the Dow Jones Industrial Average , after Deutsche Bank turned bearish on the industrial conglomerate, citing concerns over earnings quality. Analyst John Inch downgraded GE to a rare sell rating, after being at hold since October 2015. Only 2% of the companies covered by Deutsche Bank analysts have sell ratings. Inch slashed his stock price target to $24, which is 15% below current levels, from $28. “Overall, we believe GE to be overvalued given weak earnings quality and the wide gap between non-cash and cash earnings,” Inch wrote in a note to clients. “Earnings quality pressures include the exclusion of non-operating pension accounting coupled with a high level of underfunded pension obligations, ultra low tax rates that could pose a future earnings headwind, LTSA non-cash earnings contribution and pro forma quarterly matching of gains against a plethora of charges.” The stock has shed 11% year to date, while the Dow has gained 5.7%.
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