Industrial conglomerate GE reported second-quarter earnings for its GE Healthcare division, with sales flat and operating profit up only slightly amid a U.S. market the vendor called "challenging."
GE said that its healthcare unit reported quarterly revenues of $4.483 billion, essentially flat compared with the corresponding quarter of 2013. The division had segment profit of $730 million, up 1% compared with the same period a year ago.
Revenue from equipment sales was down 1%, while revenue from services was flat, according to the company. The U.S. market remains soft and was down 2%; the healthcare segment's slight gain in profit was driven by cost productivity, GE said.
GE Healthcare generated $4.8 billion in orders, basically level with a year ago. Orders in Europe grew 2% and emerging markets were up 7%, while U.S. orders fell 2%.
In highlights outside of healthcare, GE announced that it intends to spin off its consumer finance arm into a standalone company called Synchrony Financial in an initial public offering that could raise as much as $3 billion.
