General Electric Posts Higher 3Q Profit

General Electric Co. said Friday that third-quarter earnings rose 14 percent as its energy and transportation businesses did well.

The results from the Fairfield-based industrial, finance and media conglomerate, whose properties range from aircraft engine manufacturing to the NBC television network, matched Wall Street expectations.

GE also reaffirmed its profit outlook for the year.

The company earned $5.54 billion, or 54 cents per share, in the three months that ended Sept. 30, up from $4.87 billion, or 47 cents a share, a year ago.

GE took a $1.4 billion charge for its planned sale of a Japanese personal loan and a mortgage business, while realizing a gain of $1.8 billion from the sale of its plastic business.

Earnings from continuing operations were 50 cents per share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected earnings per share of 50 cents.

Revenue rose 12 percent to $42.5 billion from $37.8 billion a year earlier.

Its shares slipped 20 cents to $41.40 in premarket trading.

“GE delivered a solid quarter in spite of extreme volatility in the financial services market and some one-time items in our industrial businesses,” said GE Chairman and Chief Executive Jeff Immelt.

He said profit grew 12 percent in the infrastructure segment, led by a strong performance in the oil and gas, transportation, and energy businesses. That includes strong sales globally of aircraft engines, gas turbines and locomotives, company officials said.

The aviation business was solid as equipment orders rose 93 percent, he said.

GE said total orders were up 20 percent to $24 billion, while global sales grew 15 percent.

Profits at commercial finance increased 12 percent to $1.45 billion; GE money, up 13 percent to $942 million; NBC Universal, up 9 percent to $589 million; and industrial, up 6 percent to $513 million.

Health care was the only segment to decline, down 1 percent to $692 million.

NBC benefited from the successful…