Molly Ayala
General Electric Company (GE), one of the oldest and largest industrial conglomerates in the US, has been selling off its subsidiaries since 2001. The company, which was founded by Thomas Edison in 1892, has struggled in recent years, with its profitability flagging as a multi-industry conglomerate. GE has been selling off its subsidiaries to reduce significant levels of debt and to raise cash to streamline around a smaller core. The company has also been spinning off its subsidiaries into independent businesses. In 2024, GE split into three separate public companies: GE HealthCare, GE Aerospace, and GE Vernova (energy).
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What You'll Learn
GE's sale of its lighting division
General Electric Company (GE), one of the oldest and largest industrial conglomerates in the US, has been struggling in recent years. The company has been selling or spinning off most of its subsidiaries to reduce its significant debt. In 2014, GE's former Appliances and Lighting segment was dissolved when it sold its appliance division to Haier. GE Lighting (consumer lighting) and the newly created Current, powered by GE, became standalone businesses within the company.
GE Lighting has a long history dating back to Thomas Edison's work on lighting in the 19th century. Over the years, GE Lighting has made significant investments and innovations in the lighting industry, including the development of the first visible light-emitting diode (LED) by Nick Holonyak, an engineer at a GE lab in 1962.
In 2015, the Commercial division of GE Lighting was separated, and a new startup called Current was created. Current offers energy consulting services to help businesses and municipalities control and lower their power costs by digitally managing their lighting systems. On July 1, 2020, GE Lighting was acquired by Savant Systems, a home automation company headquartered in Hyannis, Massachusetts, for a reported $250 million. This marked the end of GE's last consumer business.
The sale of GE Lighting was not a surprise to analysts, as GE had been seeking to offload its lighting division and focus on more profitable areas such as renewable energy and healthcare technology. The lighting division accounted for a small portion of GE's total revenue, with the overall lighting division accounting for just 1.3% of GE's total revenue in the third quarter. The sale was part of a series of asset sales totalling at least $10 billion over a 12-month period. This included the sale of its century-old rail business and international and automotive lighting businesses.
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GE's exit from consumer household products
General Electric Company (GE), one of the oldest and largest industrial conglomerates in the US, has been struggling in recent years. The company, which was founded by Thomas Edison in 1892, has seen its profitability flag as a multi-industry conglomerate.
GE's earliest products included light bulbs, electric locomotives, X-ray machines, and electric stoves. The company began mass-producing electric home appliances in the 1920s and was among those that changed the look and function of American homes. In the decades that followed, GE helped create vacuum tube technology, enabling the development of radar tracking systems. The company also supplied the military with equipment and executives during World War II.
However, in recent years, GE has been winding down through spinoffs and divestments. In 2014, GE's appliance division was sold to Haier, a Chinese company, for $5.4 billion. GE Lighting, which deals with consumer lighting, became a stand-alone business within the company until it was sold to Savant Systems in 2020. With the sale of its lighting division, GE completely exited the consumer household products business. This marked the end of its connection with the average American consumer, as household goods became a less important part of the overall corporation.
In 2024, GE split into three separate public companies: GE HealthCare, GE Aerospace, and GE Vernova (energy). This spinoff was intended to enable each company to focus on its core strengths and growth opportunities. Today, GE's holdings span the sectors of renewable energy, aviation, and healthcare.
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GE's sale of a piece of its healthcare division
General Electric Company (GE), one of the oldest and largest industrial conglomerates in the US, has been struggling in recent years. The company has been trying to raise cash by selling off its subsidiaries and divisions. In 2020, GE sold a piece of its healthcare division to Danaher for around $21 billion. This was a notable transaction as the healthcare division was one of the company's best-performing and most iconic units, with mid-to-high-teens segment margins. The sale was part of GE's strategy to focus on its core aviation business, which is currently its biggest revenue generator.
GE's healthcare division has been a major player in the healthcare industry, with a presence in medical imaging machines, healthcare IT, and management software used in hospitals and medical offices worldwide. The company has also been investing in new healthcare technologies, such as 3D printing labs and advanced manufacturing and engineering centres.
Despite the recent divestments, GE's turnaround is still a work in progress. The company has been facing challenges with its finance division and has made several ill-timed acquisitions. There have been asset write-downs, restructuring efforts, and dividend cuts. However, with the cash from these recent divestitures, GE is on stronger financial ground than it was before.
Looking forward, GE plans to split into three separate public companies: GE HealthCare, GE Aerospace, and GE Vernova (energy). This spinoff will enable each company to focus on its core strengths and growth opportunities within their respective industries. GE has a long history of innovation, starting with Thomas Edison's first commercially viable incandescent lamp, and the company is expected to continue this legacy by investing in future growth areas.
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GE's sale of its major appliance business unit
General Electric Company (GE), one of the oldest and largest industrial conglomerates in the US, has been selling off or spinning off most of its subsidiaries to reduce significant levels of debt. In 2014, GE attempted to sell its appliance division to Electrolux for $5.4 billion, but the deal was blocked by the US Department of Justice over concerns that it would give Electrolux and Whirlpool control of 90% of the "do-it-yourself" market for kitchen appliances. As a result, GE sold the division to Haier in 2016 for $5.4 billion. The sale allowed GE to focus on its industrial business, including jet engines and power turbines, while Haier expanded into international markets.
GE's appliance division, now known as GE Appliances, has a long history of innovation in the home appliance space, including the creation of the first self-cleaning oven and the first over-the-range microwave. The company manufactures appliances under several brands, including GE, GE Profile, Café, Monogram, Haier, and Hotpoint. In recent years, GE Appliances has expanded its product offerings beyond major household goods, adding small appliances such as coffee makers, toasters, and blenders to its lineup. The company has also invested in new distribution centers and manufacturing facilities, including a dedicated team for the recreational living sector, producing products for motorhomes and campers.
The sale of GE's appliance division is part of a broader trend of GE's divestments and spinoffs. In 2024, GE split into three separate public companies: GE HealthCare, GE Aerospace, and GE Vernova (energy). These spinoffs enable each new company to focus on its core strengths and growth opportunities. GE's remaining business segments include aviation technology, renewable energy, and healthcare. GE has been a leader in aviation, having built the first US jet engine, the I-A, in 1941, and the most-produced jet engine in history, the J47, in 1949. Today, GE Aerospace continues to design and manufacture aircraft engines, engine components, and electric power and mechanical aircraft systems.
GE's history dates back to the late 19th century, when it grew out of one of the first electric companies under Thomas Edison. Over the years, GE has diversified into various industries, including aviation, computers, plastics, banking, and television broadcasting. The company has been a leading innovator, with GE Research responsible for major advancements such as the first American jet engine, the first commercial nuclear power plant, and the first synthetic diamonds.
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GE's sale of its broadcasting holdings
General Electric Company (GE) has been a leading American innovator since its founding by Thomas Edison in 1892. Over the years, GE has branched out into diverse areas, including aviation, computers, plastics, banking, and television broadcasting.
GE's earliest products included light bulbs, an electric locomotive, X-ray machines, and an electric stove. The company began mass-producing electric home appliances in the 1920s and was among those that changed the look and function of American homes. GE also helped create vacuum tube technology, enabling the development of radar tracking systems.
In 1986, GE bought RCA and its subsidiary, the National Broadcasting Company, Inc. (NBC). This deal gave GE an iconic New York building at 30 Rockefeller Center. NBC, founded in 1926, is the oldest of the traditional "Big Three" American television networks and is sometimes referred to as the Peacock Network due to its stylized peacock logo.
However, GE's focus shifted in the following decades, and it began to scale back its broadcasting holdings. In 2001, GE acquired the Spanish-language broadcaster Telemundo and incorporated it into NBC. Then, in 2004, GE merged NBC with Universal Studios, forming NBC Universal, with GE holding an 80% stake. In 2011, GE sold 51% of NBC Universal to Comcast, valuing Comcast's stake at $16.7 billion. This sale reflected GE's desire to refocus on its industrial roots and reduce its dependence on short-term funding.
By 2013, GE had sold its remaining stake in NBC Universal to Comcast, marking its exit from the broadcasting industry. This final sale allowed GE to achieve its goal of buying back shares issued during the financial crisis. Today, GE's holdings primarily span the sectors of renewable energy, aviation, and healthcare.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, General Electric Company has been selling off its subsidiaries and divisions since the 2008-09 recession. In 2020, GE sold its lighting division, marking its exit from the consumer products business. The company has also sold its major appliance business unit, as well as its holdings in other sectors such as renewable energy and healthcare.
The sales have helped General Electric streamline its operations and raise cash, allowing it to focus on its remaining core businesses in aviation, industrial engines, and healthcare technology. However, some have criticised the sales as a desperate move to escape out-of-favour sectors and questioned whether losing its consumer products business will hurt the company in the long run.
Some notable sales by General Electric include the sale of its lighting division to Savant Systems in 2020, the sale of its appliance division to Haier in 2016, and the sale of a piece of its healthcare division to Danaher for around $21 billion. The company has also sold off most of its broadcasting holdings, such as NBC, and has exited the oil and natural gas drilling space through a merger/spin-off transaction with Baker Hughes.
