GE Aerospace plans $7bn buyback after fourth-quarter tailwind

GE Aerospace's (US:GE) first year as a standalone entity finished with a bang as the leading jet engine maker revealed plans to buy back $7bn (£5.68bn)-worth of stock and boost its dividend by 30 per cent in 2025, after trading accelerated markedly in its fourth quarter. 

Annual revenue growth was driven by a 13 per cent uplift at the flagship commercial engines and services unit, where operating profit rose by a quarter on robust demand for the company's Leap engines as Airbus (FR:AIR) and Boeing (US:BA) step up production. While supply chain issues impacted delivery rates, divisional order numbers surged 50 per cent in the final three months of the year.