General Motors (NYSE:GM) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Shares of General Motors (NYSE:GM - Get Free Report) TSE: GMM.U gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $47.24, but opened at $45.91. General Motors shares last traded at $46.39, with a volume of 3,545,787 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on GM shares. Barclays lowered General Motors from an "overweight" rating to a "negative" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of General Motors from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $50.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of General Motors in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on General Motors from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Cowen began coverage on General Motors in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, General Motors currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $53.94.

General Motors Trading Up 0.5 %

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $46.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.24. The firm has a market cap of $43.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.13.

General Motors (NYSE:GM - Get Free Report) TSE: GMM.U last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The auto manufacturer reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $44.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.64 billion. General Motors had a net margin of 3.21% and a return on equity of 15.29%. General Motors's revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.62 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that General Motors will post 11.44 earnings per share for the current year.

General Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This is a positive change from General Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. General Motors's payout ratio is presently 7.80%.

General Motors announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the auto manufacturer to purchase up to 12.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Motors

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Trust Point Inc. grew its position in General Motors by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 7,241 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Holistic Planning LLC grew its holdings in shares of General Motors by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Holistic Planning LLC now owns 5,759 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC increased its stake in General Motors by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 1,379 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Operose Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in General Motors by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 1,413 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in General Motors by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 53,619 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock valued at $2,856,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.67% of the company's stock.

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.