In March 2017, Stephen R. Bolze, the president of General Electric’s big power-generation business, led an upbeat presentation to analysts. “We have got an exciting story for you,” he said.
The big power division, which delivered $27 billion in revenue and $5 billion in operating profit the previous year, would grow again in 2017.
But by the end of the year, the power business was in a tailspin – profit fell 88 percent in the fourth quarter. Bolze, once seen as a front-runner to succeed Jeffrey Immelt as chief executive, was out. So, too, was Immelt.
And early this month, Immelt’s replacement, John Flannery, was ousted as well – just 14 months into the job – largely a casualty of the troubled power unit.
Recognizing the financial drag, GE announced Tuesday that it would slash its quarterly dividend to 1 cent a share from 12 cents a share starting next year. The move will save $3.9 billion in cash a year.