Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in General Motors (NYSE:GM)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its holdings in General Motors (NYSE:GM - Free Report) TSE: GMM.U by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,135,157 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock after selling 101,596 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.32% of General Motors worth $167,041,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in General Motors in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of General Motors during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new position in General Motors in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. grew its position in General Motors by 9,960.0% in the fourth quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 503 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. increased its position in shares of General Motors by 551.9% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 502 shares of the auto manufacturer's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. 92.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on GM. StockNews.com downgraded General Motors from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on General Motors from $73.00 to $63.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Hsbc Global Res cut General Motors from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of General Motors from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of General Motors from $64.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $59.33.

Insider Activity at General Motors

In other news, Director Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. acquired 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $50.66 per share, for a total transaction of $607,920.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 13,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $694,751.24. This represents a 700.12 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

General Motors Stock Down 3.7 %

Shares of NYSE:GM traded down $1.70 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $44.04. The company had a trading volume of 9,943,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,542,033. The stock has a market cap of $43.82 billion, a PE ratio of 7.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27. General Motors has a 1-year low of $38.96 and a 1-year high of $61.24. The business's 50 day moving average price is $47.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

General Motors (NYSE:GM - Get Free Report) TSE: GMM.U last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The auto manufacturer reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.17. General Motors had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 3.21%. Research analysts forecast that General Motors will post 11.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

General Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. General Motors's payout ratio is 7.80%.

General Motors announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the auto manufacturer to buy up to 12.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.