GE cuts quarterly dividend in half

General Electric Co said yesterday that it would halve its quarterly dividend, as part of an overhaul of the company that new chief executive John Flannery was due to roll out later in the day.

GE said it would cut the dividend to 12 cents per share from 24 cents, starting in December. This is the third time the company has cut its dividend in its 125-year history. The other two dividend cuts were during the Great Depression and the 2009 financial crisis.

The move, widely expected after GE’s cash flow deteriorated this year, is expected to save about $4 billion in cash annually.

“We are focused on driving total shareholder return and believe this is the right decision to align our dividend payout to cash flow generation,” Flannery said in a statement.

“The dividend remains an important component of GE’s capital allocation framework. With this action and others, we are acting with urgency to make GE simpler and stronger to drive growth and create more value for our shareowners,” he added.

“Flannery plans to disclose a roadmap for the company that will focus on three of its biggest business lines — aviation, power and health care,’’ the Wall Street Journal reported earlier in the day, citing a person familiar with the matter.

The report also says the plan stops short of a break-up or more radical restructuring of the company.