Industrials Fall As GE Weighs - Industrials Roundup

Shares of manufacturing and transportation companies ticked down after another stock-market setback for General Electric. Shares of GE slid after the conglomerate named activist investor Trian Fund Management's co-founder Ed Garden to its board, another effort to shake up the company from new Chief Executive John Flannery, who recently named a new financial chief and saw his predecessor Jeffrey Immelt step down as chairman. GE's stagnation on the stock market has earned it harsh critics on Wall Street, some of whom claim the company is at a strategic loose end. Honeywell International rose after Reuters reported that the conglomerate could spin off non-core assets and split into at least two publicly traded companies. United Technologies hired Judy Marks, an executive at rival Siemens to run its Otis elevator unit after its prior leader unexpectedly left in July. Domestic industrial companies are riding high because of the expectations of a tax deal in Congress. "A tax deal is unlikely this year, but we are cautiously optimistic that 2018 is possible," said Bob Doll, chief investment strategist at money manager Nuveen Investments. "We anticipate a modest tax reform bill reducing corporate tax levels and providing some relief for middle-income Americans. Such measures would likely boost economic growth and be favorable for equities in general and small cap stocks in particular."

-Rob Curran, rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 09, 2017 16:32 ET (20:32 GMT)