Pruning General Electric

First Jeff Immelt had a yard sale. Then he reorganized. In a move to continue his modernization of the century-old conglomerate, General Electric (nyse: ) Immelt, the firm's chief executive, announced Friday that the company's structure will now consist of four businesses down from six. When he took over in 2001, there were 11 different segments under his auspices. In May, he announced plans to divest the company's original division, which makes the electrical goods from which it takes its name (See "Appliances A Washout At GE") and a deal to sell the plastics operations to Saudi Basic Industries. (See "Saudis Buying GE Plastics") On Friday, Immelt said the change in structure will “ best utilize our strong leadership team while maximizing synergy and execution.” The announcement didn't move investors. GE didn't gain or lose... [read full story]