GE likely to be dropped from Dow 30 index, says Deutsche Bank General Electric (GE) is likely to be dropped from the Dow Jones Industrial Average after being in the index of 30 companies for over 110 years as an original member since 1896, Deutsche Bank analyst John Inch tells investors in a research note. The chances that GE could be removed from the Dow are increasing as the company continues to face "substantial challenges," the analyst writes. These include "earnings and cash pressure, tough global power generation markets, aggressive downsizing, shrinking its portfolio, management shake-up and SEC investigations," Inch argues. He sees "headline risk" as the most significant risk factor if GE were to be dropped from the Dow, "potentially amplified by GE's high mix of retail investors." Inch notes that the last major Dow shakeup occurred in September 2003, when American Airlines (AAL), Bank of America (BAC) and Hewlett Packard (HPQ) were removed and Goldman Sachs (GS), Nike (NKE) and Verizon (VZ) were added. Inch has a Sell rating on General Electric with a $15 price target. The shares closed yesterday down 33c to $15