GE Just Made Its Biggest Acquisition in Years
Not too long ago, General Electric (NYSE: GE) had a penchant for making big acquisitions. But the storied conglomerate fell on hard times a few years back as profit and cash flow from its power business plunged and its insurance liabilities ballooned. This forced GE to change course and begin selling off pieces of the business in order to repair its balance sheet.
Fortunately, GE has made significant progress on those repairs, enabling it to start playing offense again (albeit in a small way). On Thursday, the company announced its biggest acquisition in over four years, as its healthcare division plans to buy BK Medical from Altaris Capital Partners.
GE's balance sheet has improved dramatically since the end of 2017. At that time, the company had gross debt of $134.6 billion, along with substantial pension and insurance obligations. By the middle of 2021, it had reduced gross debt to $63.5 billion. GE is also getting a better handle on its non-debt obligations.
Source Fool.com
