A strong performance at GE Healthcare was one of the few bright spots in parent company General Electric's financial report for the 2017 calendar year.
Revenue for the GE Healthcare segment increased 5% to $19.1 billion in 2017, compared with $18.3 billion in 2016. The business also grew its profit by 9% to $3.44 billion last year, compared with $3.16 billion in 2016.
For the fourth quarter of 2017 (end-December 31), revenue rose 6% to $5.4 billion, compared with $5.1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2016. Quarterly profit climbed 13% to $1.16 billion, up from $1.03 billion in the same quarter a year ago.
Outside healthcare was a different story, however. The company overall reported a $9.8 billion net loss for the fourth quarter, due in large measure to a $6.2 billion charge related to a former insurance business that it included in its year-end 2017 financial statement. The charge has prompted an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), GE disclosed in its financial results.
GE is cooperating fully with the probe, and Chief Financial Officer Jamie Miller said she is not "overly concerned" about the issues under scrutiny, according to an article from Bloomberg.
Investors and industry observers are keeping a close watch on the conglomerate in 2018 to see how GE handles its financial issues. On January 16, GE CEO John Flannery told investors that he is looking at "many, many different permutations" for the company that could include "separately traded assets really in any one of our units," Bloomberg reported.
