General Motors (NYSE:GM) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) shares gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $43.21, but opened at $45.89. General Motors shares last traded at $45.30, with a volume of 8,988,857 shares trading hands.

The auto manufacturer reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.60. General Motors had a net margin of 5.89% and a return on equity of 14.34%. The firm had revenue of $43.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $41.09 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.21 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

General Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. General Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wolfe Research raised shares of General Motors from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of General Motors from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays raised their price objective on General Motors from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on General Motors in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on General Motors from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other General Motors news, CAO Christopher Hatto sold 3,500 shares of General Motors stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $157,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 12,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $540,315. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Julian G. Blissett sold 13,826 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.24, for a total transaction of $528,706.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 87,567 shares in the company, valued at $3,348,562.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Christopher Hatto sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $157,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $540,315. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 86,248 shares of company stock valued at $3,614,078. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GM. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in General Motors by 11.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 25,270 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $817,000 after purchasing an additional 2,605 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its position in General Motors by 16.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 29,724 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $980,000 after purchasing an additional 4,265 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in shares of General Motors in the third quarter worth about $249,000. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of General Motors by 14.0% in the third quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,957 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $625,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Global Investments acquired a new position in shares of General Motors in the third quarter worth about $360,000. 92.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Motors Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $52.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.51. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

General Motors Company Profile

General Motors Company designs, builds, and sells trucks, crossovers, cars, and automobile parts; and provide software-enabled services and subscriptions worldwide. The company operates through GM North America, GM International, Cruise, and GM Financial segments. It markets its vehicles primarily under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Baojun, and Wuling brand names.