GE's Lost Decade

Jeffrey Immelt won one of corporate America’s top prizes 12 years ago when he was chosen to succeed industry legend Jack Welch as chief executive officer of General Electric. The glow didn’t last: He assumed his post just four days before Sept. 11. In 2008 the economic crisis sent the stock plunging, as investors worried that financing unit GE Capital would bring down the entire company. Five years later the economy is recovering, and the market is regularly setting new records. While GE shares have quadrupled since their low, they are still 33 percent below their price when Immelt took over. Including dividends, investors have a total return of zero under Immelt’s reign. The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index has returned 110 percent in that time.