By Muhammad Bazil - January 14, 2013 | Tickers: C, GE, PHG | 0 Comments

Muhammad is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinions of our bloggers and are not formally edited.

While General Electric (NYSE: GE) still remains the largest U.S. conglomerate and arguably one of the most renowned names in the global space, a section of pundits have, for the past several years, questioned its ability to deliver utility for its shareholders. This argument is founded on the lackluster, yet steadily improving, performance that General Electrics stock exhibited at the wake of the dreaded 2008 financial juncture. In addition, some analysts argue that Jeff Immelt, the CEO, played a key role in suppressing General Electrics performance over the years. Indeed, the last ten years have been characterized by a lower-than-average kind of performance.

The graph below offers a deeper insight, showing General Electrics performance relative to key benchmarks:

As detailed, General Electric has performed relatively lower than the S&P 500 and the Dow over the years. Nonetheless, whats more notable is the distinct correlation between General Electrics performance and the general performance in the market. This suggests that General Electrics performance is more influenced by broader market conditions than it is by shifting tendencies in its internal environment.

With this in mind, making Immelt take the bullet for the outgoing decade is blatant finger pointing. General Electrics performance is more reliant on macro factors and as such, shouldnt be predominantly analyzed from a historical performance perspective. Prospective investors should look at some other compelling elements in General Electric like longevity and size. Albeit taken for granted, these are some of the factors that assure an investor that their money is not only safe but also poised to double over the years.

Rosy relationship with the government brightens long term outlook

The government is one of the high priority deep-pocketed customers in General Electrics stable, spending millions of dollars each year. To further fortify an already solid relationship, General Electric and the government have inked a contract worth $138.3 million. This amount, which will greatly add to General Electrics top line, will secure the conglomerates engineering, technical and logistics services in support of the high priority T700 series turbine engines.

To further accent this already lucrative deal, the electronics heavyweight secured a $242 million contract in February last year. The contract required General Electric to overhaul and upgrade the T701D and T700 engines. This was then succeeded by another remunerative September repair contract worth $105.2 million.

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This Conglomerate Is Inclined Toward Longevity