I have been watching General Electric’s stock for the past few months as it’s value has declined significantly. Warren Buffett recently bought 3 billion dollars of GE preferred stock yielding 10% and has the option to buy 3 billion dollars worth of more shares at $22.25 over the next five years. This plays right into Buffett’s philosophy of investing in companies with a wide economic moat. The GE name and its diverse array of industrial and financial businesses are a major competitive advantage. The stock is currently trading at about $15.50 a share. The stock has declined about 60% from its 52 week high of $38.67. I am not a huge fan of General Electric but at its current level it is an intriguing stock. GE currently pays a dividend of $1.24 which is a 7.7% yield. I have wondered if the dividend is safe. GE’s management made an announcement last week that they will pay the dividend through 2009. So I will take them at their word. Could GE decline below $15.50 in the near time? Yes. But I have a hard time believing that this industrial conglomerate will not be worth more than $15.50 a share in the future. I believe that the company is trading at a discount to its intrinsic value, So I purchased 250 shares of GE stock at below $16. In my opinion, any pullbacks below the current price are buying opportunities.
