UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) April 3, 2012
General Electric Company
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| New York | 001-00035 | 14-0689340 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) |
(IRS Employer Identification No.) | ||
| 3135 Easton Turnpike, Fairfield, Connecticut | 06828-0001 | |||
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) | |||
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code (203) 373-2211
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instructions A.2. below):
| ¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Item 8.01 Other Events.
On April 3, 2012, Moody’s Investor Service (“Moody’s”) announced that it had downgraded the senior unsecured debt rating of General Electric Company (“GE”) by one notch from Aa2 to Aa3 and the senior unsecured rating of General Electric Capital Corporation (“GECC”) by two notches from Aa2 to A1. The ratings downgrade does not affect GE’s and GECC’s short-term funding ratings of Prime-1, which were affirmed by Moody’s. Moody’s stated the ratings outlook for GE and GECC is stable. The action follows a review initiated by Moody’s on March 19, 2012. GE does not anticipate any significant operational or funding impacts from this change.
Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements:
This Current Report contains “forward-looking statements” – that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance and financial condition, and often contain words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “seek,” “see,” or “will.” Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, particular uncertainties that could cause our actual results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements include: current economic and financial conditions, including volatility in interest and exchange rates, commodity and equity prices and the value of financial assets; potential market disruptions or other impacts arising in the United States or Europe from developments in the European sovereign debt situation; the impact of conditions in the financial and credit markets on the availability and cost of GECC’s funding and on our ability to reduce GECC’s asset levels as planned; the impact of conditions in the housing market and unemployment rates on the level of commercial and consumer credit defaults; changes in Japanese consumer behavior that may affect our estimates of liability for excess interest refund claims (Grey Zone); our ability to maintain our current credit rating and the impact on our funding costs and competitive position if we do not do so; the adequacy of our cash flow and earnings and other conditions which may affect our ability to pay our quarterly dividend at the planned level; the level of demand and financial performance of the major industries we serve, including, without limitation, air and rail transportation, energy generation, real estate and healthcare; the impact of regulation and regulatory, investigative and legal proceedings and legal compliance risks, including the impact of financial services regulation; strategic actions, including acquisitions, joint ventures and dispositions and our success in completing announced transactions and integrating acquired businesses; the impact of potential information technology or data security breaches; and numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business and competitive nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| General Electric Company | ||||
| (Registrant) | ||||
| Date: April 6, 2012 | /s/ Jamie S. Miller | |||
| Jamie S. Miller Vice President and Controller | ||||
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