After months of saying the dividend was safe, the Board of Directors of General Electric Company (GE) Friday authorized a plan to reduce the Company’s quarterly dividend to $0.10 from $0.31 per outstanding share of the Company's common stock, effective for the second half of 2009. The company's news release stated the decision would preserve approximately $9 billion for the Company on an annualized basis. GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt said:“We recognize the importance of the dividend to our shareholders and the significance of this decision, but we believe it is the right precautionary action at this time to further strengthen our Company for the long-term, while still providing an attractive dividend.”As is my policy, I immediately sold my shares of GE.
Full Disclosure: No position in GE
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