GE’s Knack for Bad Timing Shows in Ugly Baker Hughes Unwind
Kicking off its Baker Hughes divestiture in a week like this for the oil market shows how deep in the hole GE is.
A GE Co., but for how long?
Photographer: Aaron M. Sprecher/Bloomberg
General Electric Co.’s plan to unravel its Baker Hughes stake smacks of desperation.
The embattled industrial conglomerate said on Tuesday that it will start chipping away at its 62.5 percent stake in Baker Hughes, a GE Co. GE gained this holding when it merged its energy assets into Baker Hughes in 2017. It was previously limited in its ability to dispose of the stake until July 2019, but those restrictions are now being lifted. GE will knock its stake down to just above 50 percent by selling stock back to Baker Hughes and offering another chunk to investors in the public market.