GE aviation and energy businesses start trading on NYSE, marking the end of the conglomerate

General Electric, long a symbol of American manufacturing and steeped in a rich history, is officially moving on from its existence as a sprawling conglomerate.

The Boston company, known for everything from light bulbs to jet engines, has completed its split into three separate companies, as its aerospace and energy businesses start trading on the New York Stock Exchange as separate entities on Tuesday.

GE announced in November 2021 that it planned to split into three companies focused on aviation, energy and health care. At the time the company had already rid itself of the appliaces that it was known for. In 2020 GE stopped sales of the light bulbs that it had been making since its founding in the late 19th century.

In its heyday, GE’s stock became one of the most sought after on Wall Street under Jack Welch, one of America's first CEO “superstars.” Nicknamed “the house that Jack built,” GE routinely outperformed peers and the broader market, helped in part by GE Capital, its financial wing. Through the 1990s, it returned 1,120.6% on investments. GE’s revenue grew nearly fivefold during the tenure of Welch — who was named chief executive in 1981 — and the company’s value increased 30-fold.