Its valuation doubled in 2023, underpinned by the positive reception given by investors to the group's split into three separate entities, as well as the clear recovery in the aerospace segment following the nuclear winter caused by the pandemic.

At the end of 2022, GE spun off its healthcare segment, now listed as GE HealthCareTechnologies. Stable but not growing, this segment - in which GE retains a 13.5% stake - generates annual profits of between $1.5 and $2 billion. Its current valuation reflects this dynamic.

Next spring, GE will split into two entities: GE Aerospace, the jewel in the crown, to be headed by Larry Culp, the former CEO of Danaher and architect of the Boston-based conglomerate's turnaround; and GE Vernova, which will bring together the company's renewables and turbines businesses under one roof.

GE Aerospace boasts the highest operating margins and an ultra-dominant competitive position - in a duopoly with Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney, depending on the engine range - but its growth potential is limited; the year 2023 was excellent, albeit exceptional, as it was marked by the recovery in post-pandemic orders.

GE Vernova, on the other hand, continues to enjoy sustained growth thanks to renewable energies. Despite an abrupt downturn in the cycle, which has not spared any of its competitors, and operations that remain clearly loss-making, the renewables segment recorded a 54% increase in orders in 2023.

Within Vernova, this loss will be offset almost to the dollar by the operating profit of the turbine segment, or GE Power. This segment will record modest growth - only 4% - in orders in 2023, but will deliver an operating profit of $1.45 billion.

Despite a healthy order book and a consolidated operating profit up 63% on last year, the market is likely to be cautious about the more timid than expected earnings forecasts for 2024 and 2025.

This is all the more true given that the overall valuation reflects the sum of the parts, following the spectacular rise in the share price in 2023. GE Aerospace and GE Vernova both have equivalent sales - $33 and $32 billion - but the former generates $6 billion in operating profit, while the latter barely breaks even.

Once the demerger has been completed and the two entities listed independently, it would not be surprising to see strong selling pressure on GE Vernova shares - as GE's historical shareholders are likely to want to keep the jewel in the crown and divest themselves of the less profitable segment.