How Are These 4 Blue-Chips Performing?

General Electric (NYSE:GE):

Shares of the conglomerate reached their highest level since 2008 after announcing a deal to sell NBC Universal to Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA).

In 2011, Comcast made its move to buy most of NBC Universal, but GE still maintained a 49 percent minority stake in the broadcast company. Fortunately for Comcast, GE had been planning to eventually pull out of the entertainment business, and this exchange of power completed both companies’ plans.

Comcast paid $16.7 billion to GE — $11.4 billion with on-hand cash, $4 billion with unsecured notes, $725 million with subsidiary preferred stock, and $2 billion with credit facility borrowings. Interestingly, shares of GE and Comcast climbed higher on the news, signaling investors on both sides of the negotiation table were happy with the outcome.