How GE Makes Money

General Electric Co. (GE) was a global industrial company that provided power generation, renewable energy, and industrial aviation products. GE served customers in over 160 countries and had manufacturing and service operations globally.

As of 2024, GE now operates solely in the aerospace industry under the name "GE Aerospace." Its competitors include Honeywell International Inc. (HON), RTX (RTX), and Safran (SAF).

GE's Financials

GE has refocused its operations on aerospace, executing a plan to split its businesses into three separate and independent public companies. In 2023, the company completed the spinoff of its healthcare business, so for 2023, its reporting segments were Aerospace, Power, and Renewable Energy. There is also a Corporate segment.

In 2024, GE spun off its renewables and power business into a standalone entity, GE Vernova, leaving GE with only one business: aerospace.

For the fiscal year ending 2023, the company reported net earnings attributable to its common shareholders of $9.19 billion, a significant increase from the previous year's earnings of $51 million. GE's total revenues were $67.95 billion for 2023, up 16.96% year over year (YOY).

GE's Business Segments

For FY 2023, GE operated through three industrial segments: Aerospace, Renewable Energy, and Power. It also has an additional segment it calls Corporate, which it uses to account for revenues and earnings that are not included in the other three segments. The corporate segment will not be discussed below as GE accounts for it separately in its financial statements.

Aerospace

The Aerospace segment designs and produces commercial and military aircraft engines, integrated engine components, electric power, and mechanical aircraft systems. It also provides aftermarket services to support its products.

The Aerospace segment's profit rose by 28% YOY to $6.1 billion in FY 2023. It composed about 99.8% of the total profit. Annual revenue rose by 22% YOY to $31.77 billion. The segment made up 49.22% of total segment revenues.

Renewable Energy

The Renewable Energy segment offers renewable energy generation products, services, and integrated solutions. It provides onshore and offshore wind, blades, hydro, storage, grid solutions, and hybrid renewables.

The Renewable Energy segment had a loss of $1.44 billion, which was an improvement over 2022's loss of $2.24 billion. As the segment generated a loss, it did not contribute to profit. Revenue for the segment increased by 15.97% to $15.05 billion in 2023, making up about 23.31% of total segment revenues.

Power

The Power segment provides products and services related to energy production. Its products and technologies utilize oil, gas, fossil, diesel, and nuclear to produce electric power. This GE segment offers gas and steam turbines, a full balance of plant, upgrade, and service solutions, and data-leveraging software.

The Power segment's profit rose to $1.45 billion in FY 2023; a 19.06% increase. It made up 0.2% of total profits. Revenue rose to $17.3 billion; a 9.03% increase. It accounted for 27.47% of GE's total segment revenues.

GE's Recent Developments

In April 2024, GE completed the spin-off of its power and renewable energy segments into a new, standalone entity: GE Vernova. GE itself now operates as GE Aerospace. GE Vernova will focus on power, wind, and electrification. Both companies, along with GE Healthcare, are publicly traded companies.

The Bottom Line

General Electric has been a staple in the U.S. economy for more than 125 years. After suffering substantial financial difficulties in the first two decades of the twenty-first century, it is still working to regain its standing. It has restructured and rebranded itself as an aerospace company and divested other endeavors to focus on its most profitable segment.