It will sell most of its GE Capital assets, totaling $500 billion.

It will sell nearly all its real-estate portfolio to investors including Blackstone and Wells Fargo for $26.5 billion.

The company also said that it would bring back about $36 billion in cash currently overseas and that its board had authorized a share-repurchase program of up to $50 billion.

GE shares are up as much as 8% premarket.

"This is a major step in our strategy to focus GE around its competitive advantages," Jeff Immelt, GE's chairman and CEO, said in a press release. "GE today is a premier industrial and technology company with businesses in essential infrastructure industries. These businesses are leaders in technology, the Industrial Internet, and advanced manufacturing. They are well positioned in growth markets and are delivering superior customer outcomes, while achieving higher margins. They will be paired with a smaller GE Capital, whose businesses are aligned with GE's industrial growth."