General Motors (NYSE:GM) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 62,120,000 shares, an increase of 6.6% from the May 31st total of 58,300,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,100,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.4 days. Approximately 5.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on GM. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on General Motors in a report on Thursday, April 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho boosted their price target on General Motors from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. TheStreet raised General Motors from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of General Motors in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of General Motors from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Motors presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.91.

General Motors Stock Performance

Shares of GM stock opened at $46.71 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $45.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.16. General Motors has a one year low of $26.30 and a one year high of $49.35. The firm has a market cap of $53.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.43.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The auto manufacturer reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.60. The company had revenue of $43.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.09 billion. General Motors had a net margin of 6.13% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that General Motors will post 9.43 EPS for the current year.

General Motors announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, June 11th that permits the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the auto manufacturer to repurchase up to 10.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

General Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. General Motors’s payout ratio is 5.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Mary T. Barra sold 626,316 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.46, for a total value of $27,219,693.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,198,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,093,242.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other General Motors news, CEO Mary T. Barra sold 626,316 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.46, for a total value of $27,219,693.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,198,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,093,242.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Mary T. Barra sold 326,305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.33, for a total value of $15,770,320.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 898,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,431,657.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,152,621 shares of company stock worth $51,818,111. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Motors

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of General Motors in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Motors in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its position in shares of General Motors by 75.9% in the 4th quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 832 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of General Motors in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in General Motors during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. 92.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.