General Electric Co on Friday said third-quarter profit rose 15 percent, boosted by rebounding earnings at its energy business and strong demand for jet engines, although revenue fell at media arm NBC Universal.
Strong demand for commercial airplanes continues to drive orders of GE's jet engines and aircraft financing, while a solid economy is spurring activity across the company's array of businesses, including plastics, health care products and commercial finance.
The conglomerate, whose shares rose slightly in early trade, posted net income of $4.68 billion, or 44 cents per share, compared with $4.07 billion, or 38 cents per share, a year earlier. The results matched analysts' estimates and the company's own forecast last week.
Prudential Equity Group analyst Nicholas Heymann, who rates GE shares "outperform," called the company a beacon of safe and predictable results.
"GE's near-term and long-term outlook now appears the best it has been in almost a decade," Heymann said in a note to clients.
Revenue rose 9 percent to $41.93 billion, ahead of Wall Street expectations for $41.2 billion. Orders rose 11 percent.