General Motors (NYSE:GM) Shares Up 0.1% Following Analyst Upgrade

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) shares shot up 0.1% during trading on Thursday after StockNews.com upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The company traded as high as $45.35 and last traded at $45.12. 4,548,689 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 17,389,449 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.08.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on GM. Citigroup upped their price objective on General Motors from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on General Motors from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. TheStreet upgraded General Motors from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wedbush upped their price target on General Motors from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on General Motors from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Motors

In other news, EVP Julian G. Blissett sold 13,826 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 87,567 shares in the company, valued at $3,348,562.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Gerald Johnson sold 15,190 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.03, for a total value of $608,055.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 98,628 shares in the company, valued at $3,948,078.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Julian G. Blissett sold 13,826 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 87,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,348,562.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 86,248 shares of company stock worth $3,614,078 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Motors

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Highlander Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in General Motors in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. SouthState Corp increased its holdings in General Motors by 173.8% in the third quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 764 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in General Motors in the first quarter valued at about $38,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in General Motors by 75.9% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Sachetta LLC purchased a new position in General Motors in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.67% of the company’s stock.

General Motors Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $52.67 billion, a PE ratio of 5.58, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.51. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.19.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The auto manufacturer reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.60. General Motors had a net margin of 6.13% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The business 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 revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that General Motors will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. General Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.87%.

About General Motors

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.