GE Aerospace falls 3.7% after quarterly results despite raised guidance

Session of October 20, 2026 · Published October 21, 2026 · 4 min read

What happened

GE Aerospace (GE) fell 3.7% on October 20, 2026, after third-quarter results beat estimates but prompted investor concern about cash flow. The stock opened 2.9% below the previous close and closed at $299.87, after the company reported adjusted EPS of $2.25 and revenue of $14.1 billion that topped expectations. GE raised its full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $8 to $8.10 per share from $7.65 to $7.85 and said orders and revenues grew, led by commercial engine demand and aftermarket services, according to Zacks Investment Research and MarketBeat. The quarterly report also cited improvements in free cash flow that supported the higher outlook.

Closing price over the last 30 trading sessions. On October 20, 2026, GE closed at $299.87, down 3.7% on the day and 7.9% lower than 30 sessions earlier.

How big was the move

The session’s decline was large relative to recent activity: trading volume ran at 2.2 times its 20-day average, and the day’s move measured 2.1 times a typical daily move for this stock. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% on the day while the Industrials sector median rose 0.5%, leaving the stock 4.2 percentage points worse than the sector median. Over the last five sessions the stock fell 2.5% while the S&P 500 over five sessions fell 1.2%. The share price change followed a pattern seen in prior quarters: typical two-day reactions after recent reports have seen the stock fall 1.1%.

Each bar is one day's price change; the outlined bar is October 20, 2026. A typical daily move over the past year was 2.1%, so the latest move equals 1.8 times that. Moves outside the dashed lines (about 4.1%) are unusual.

The technical picture

The stock traded 3.7% below its 20-day moving average, 8.6% below its 50-day moving average and 7.4% below its 200-day moving average. The 50-day average is above the 200-day average, a sign of an established uptrend. The Relative Strength Index (14 days) was 34, inside a neutral range between 30 and 70. Shares were 22.9% below the 52-week high and had fallen 6.0% over one month and 12.1% over three months. One-year performance was effectively flat, down 0.1%, leaving the stock 15.8 percentage points behind the S&P 500 over the same period. Sixty-day annualized volatility was 28%, lower than 65% of its own readings over five years, and the stock’s beta of 1.34 indicates it tends to move more than the market.

Closing price over the past year. GE ends the period 21.3% below its 52-week high, below its 50-day average ($327.93) and below its 200-day average ($323.74).

Fundamentals and valuation

For the four quarters through September 30, 2026, revenue was $52.58 billion, up 19.5% from a year earlier, and diluted earnings per share were $8.65, a rise of 15.5% year over year. Gross margin narrowed to 35.2% from 37.8% a year earlier, and operating margin declined to 19.2% from 21.6%. Free-cash-flow margin was 15.3%, return on invested capital was 10.4% and the balance sheet showed net debt of 0.8 times EBITDA. Share count over one year decreased by 2.4%.

Quarterly revenue by period end. The latest quarter brought $14.1B, 15.5% more than the same quarter a year earlier.

On valuation, the stock traded at 34.7 times trailing earnings and 37.8 times expected forward earnings, with a free-cash-flow yield of 2.5%. Its price to trailing earnings reading was lower than 53% of its own readings over the past five years; the five-year median was 34.7 times earnings. PromtFinance scores placed Growth at 69 (Positive), Quality at 65 (Positive) and Revisions at 90 (Exceptional), while Value scored 32 (Weak). Those ratings highlight a tension between solid growth and quality measures on one hand and a stretched valuation and weak value score on the other.

Earnings and analyst expectations

GE reported adjusted EPS of $2.25 on October 20, 2026, against $2.01 expected, 11.9% above estimates. That marked the company’s 15th consecutive quarter beating estimates and the average surprise over the last four reports was 11.6% above estimates. Headline GAAP EPS from continuing operations was reported as $2.32. Analysts’ consensus price target was $409.60, 36.6% above the closing price, based on 35 analysts; 69% of those ratings were Buy and the consensus rating was Buy. Market coverage noted that, despite the beat and the raised full-year profit and free cash flow outlook, investors focused on cash-flow details and valuation, which likely contributed to the intraday decline.

Diluted earnings per share by quarter. The latest quarter shows $2.20, against $2.02 in the same quarter a year earlier.

What to watch

Next report: January 28, 2027
Full-year adjusted EPS guidance: $8 to $8.10 per share (raised from $7.65 to $7.85)
Trading volume on the October 20 session: 2.2 times its 20-day average
Similar sessions in the past five years: in 36 prior sessions with a decline of at least 3.7%, the median result 20 trading days later was a gain of 2.0% and 22 of 36 were higher
PromtFinance Revisions score: 90 (Exceptional)

Full GE analysis: scores, chart and financials →