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After early bump, GE slumps under Culp
Larry Culp was named GE’s chief executive Oct. 1. (T. Rowe Price via Associated Press)
By Richard Clough
Bloomberg News

So much for the Larry Culp bump.

General Electric Co. has lost all of the gains from a rally earlier this month sparked by Culp’s surprise appointment as chief executive officer.

The new slump suggests a leadership change — even one bringing in a respected chief executive such as Culp — won’t be sufficient by itself to fix the deep problems facing the manufacturer. While a broad market decline pulled down many stocks Friday, GE is facing renewed concerns about the hurdles in its insurance and power-equipment operations.

GE fell 4.2 percent percent to $11.30 a share Friday after sliding as low as $11.18. That’s the worst intraday level since July 2009 — and below the $11.29 closing price on Sept. 28, the last trading day before Culp became chief executive.

The Boston-based company won applause from investors by ousting John Flannery, who had run GE for just over a year, and handing the reins to Culp, the former head of Danaher Corp. The new chief executive was tasked with accelerating portfolio changes and cost-cutting to help stem one of the deepest slides in GE’s 126-year history.

Among the challenges he faces is a deteriorating long-term care insurance portfolio, which may need billions of dollars in additional capital, Gordon Haskett analyst John Inch said in a note.

Culp has yet to give any public insight into his strategy, aside from a brief statement in a press release announcing his appointment.