AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Boosts Holdings in General Motors (NYSE:GM)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its stake in General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) by 7.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,403,708 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 246,867 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd owned approximately 0.30% of General Motors worth $158,136,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of General Motors by 14.6% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 48,767,573 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,211,609,000 after purchasing an additional 6,201,777 shares in the last quarter. Putnam Investments LLC increased its position in shares of General Motors by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 20,237,820 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $726,942,000 after buying an additional 2,905,689 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Motors by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 18,097,486 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $650,062,000 after buying an additional 3,247,050 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of General Motors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $602,280,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in General Motors by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,731,249 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $493,226,000 after acquiring an additional 1,472,297 shares in the last quarter. 92.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Mark L. Reuss sold 14,858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.01, for a total transaction of $683,616.58. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 162,049 shares in the company, valued at $7,455,874.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other General Motors news, President Mark L. Reuss sold 14,858 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.01, for a total value of $683,616.58. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 162,049 shares in the company, valued at $7,455,874.49. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Rory Harvey sold 2,302 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.31, for a total transaction of $108,907.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $489,942.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 391,402 shares of company stock worth $18,818,536. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

General Motors Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE GM traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $49.25. The stock had a trading volume of 10,251,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,589,156. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $45.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.19. General Motors has a 1 year low of $26.30 and a 1 year high of $50.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $56.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.43.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The auto manufacturer reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.39. General Motors had a net margin of 6.22% and a return on equity of 15.77%. The firm had revenue of $47.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.91 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that General Motors will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Motors declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, June 11th that permits the company to buyback $6.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the auto manufacturer to reacquire up to 10.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

General Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. General Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of General Motors from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on General Motors from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of General Motors in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Nomura cut shares of General Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $34.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of General Motors in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, General Motors has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.17.

General Motors 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.