GM stock at the highest point in more than two years

Paul A. Eisenstein Detroit Bureau may 20, 2013 at 10:45 ET
A survey of 15 analysts conducted by the NASDAQ 10 GM shares found a "strong buy" recommendation of placing on the market, two exhibition "buy" recommendations and the other valuation of the shares "Hold." No one was on the side of "Sales".

Maybe it's just the flood, lifting all boats, but General Motors stock has close its highest hit in more than two years - beat the $33 a share price tag set during the initial public offering in November 2010.

The resurgence comes as the entire stock market fees by a record to another, but also that that impressed investors by the power of the giant manufacturer are $865 million in the result for the first quarter of 2013 announced earlier this month.

Although it now three consecutive quarterly profits brought, GM still in the "early innings" of economic recovery ", said CEO Dan Akerson over the weekend in South Bend, Indiana, where he gave the commencement speech for Notre Dame business school graduates. GM said "on the threshold", the Executive Branch, the recovery of its investment grade debt rating back. Akerson also suggested, in his speech, that the manufacturer the S & P 500 will join "before too long."

GM has been removed from this stock index as it fell into bankruptcy in 2009.

A survey of 15 analysts conducted by the NASDAQ 10 GM shares found a "strong buy" recommendation of placing on the market, two exhibition "buy" recommendations and the other valuation of the shares "Hold." No one was on the side of "Sales".

GM stock has an almost 80% increase already it posted, since in July at only $18,85 per share Valley. The manufacturer had launched its IPO in November 2010 at $33 per share in life.

"It was a wild ride for GM investors," said Christian Mayes, automotive analyst at Edward Jones, the Detroit News Friday.

"What a comparison. It is day and night, "echoed Joe Phillippi, a longtime Wall Street auto analyst who now runs his own consulting firm, AutoTrends. But main source River is more cautious when it comes to, predictions, how high was the GM could rise. "I am not still not completely convinced."

The manufacturer has a number of challenges main points out, especially in Europe, where it has lost money 13 years in a row and most recently put in plans; place the latest in a series of turnaround European losses net led to a slight decline in the earnings in the first quarter compared to a $1 billion a year earlier.

"they have a long way to go to meat from the product line," he added that pointed out that the most GM get profits from the light truck side of the business.

While the Chevrolet Malibu far more poorly than GM expected has performed after its launch last year, have other new cars faring better were including the new Cadillac ATS. And the manufacturer has in the great and all seen a great improvement in his performance in a wide variety of quality and customer satisfaction surveys. It scored victories in six segments of the overall index of the quality of strategic vision released last week. That was twice as many as Japanese giant Toyota.

Since the beginning of this year alone, GM has increased some 14% of value, which comes as good news for consumers. The US Treasury has quickly sold out of stock there in Exchange for its 2009 bailout of the automaker. And every penny increase add up quickly.

After selling off significant tranches of GM shares earlier this year, Government 16% to the manufacturer, with plans to stop completely until April 2014. The current upturn in the value could accelerate.

But there is little doubt who will ultimately remain taxpayers with billions of bailout losses. To break even, the remaining 241,7 million shares for $78 per share would have to go. Even the most optimistic analysts expect you to come not GM close to that level any time soon.

Copyright © 2009-2013, the Detroit Bureau

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GM posts highest annual profit ever

Stan Honda / AFP - Getty Images

Things are looking up ... mostly. The General Motors headquarters January 10, 2012 in Detroit, Michigan.

Updated at 12:20 p.m. ET

General Motors posted flat fourth-quarter income Thursday but still managed to haul in $7.6 billion worth in profits last year, up 62 percent from the prior year.

It was the highest annual profit ever for the automaker, which emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2009 after a government-led bailout.

The U.S. government still owns 26.5 percent of the company and is waiting for the share price to rise before selling in an effort to recoup the bailout money. GM stock was up 6 percent at $26.43 in midday trading after the earnings announcement.

"We will build on these results as we bring more new cars, crossovers and trucks to market," CEO Daniel Akerson said in a statement.

Full-year revenue rose 11 percent to $105 billion.

North America led the way with a $7.2 billion pretax profit. But problems surfaced that could hurt future earnings. GM lost $700 million before taxes in Europe, and lost $100 million in South America.

"We obviously have work to do still and a long way to get to the objectives we ultimately want to get to," GM Chief Financial Officer Dan Ammann told reporters.

"We clearly have work to do in Europe. We have work to do in the South America business. Frankly, we have work to do all around the company in terms of cost opportunity," he added.

GM'S fourth-quarter profit was flat with 2010. GM earned $500 million, or 28 cents per share. Revenue rose 3 percent to $38 billion. Before one-time items, GM earned 40 cents per share. Analysts expected earnings of 42 cents on revenue of $37.9 billion.

Ammann said GM has not gone far enough in cutting costs in its European operations, but declined to provide a 2012 financial forecast for a unit that the No. 1 U.S. automaker has struggled to return to profitability. Overall, GM expects 2012 sales to top the $150.3 billion it saw in 2011 and its market share to remain flat.

Last year, GM made the bulk of its income in North America, where its pretax profit totaled $7.2 billion. International Operations, which includes Asia, made $1.9 billion before taxes, but that was down.

During the year, GM's global sales rose 7.6 percent to 9.03 million vehicles to help it reclaim the title of world's largest automaker from Toyota Motor Corp.

This year, GM expects to increase its revenue as global auto sales grow and it charges more for models. However, it will make less money per vehicle as the mix of sales continues to shift to cars from trucks, which have bigger sticker prices. It also expects to invest $8 billion on new products and technology, and says pension expenses will rise. The company wants to keep expenses down by freezing its underfunded U.S. pension plan for salaried workers.

GM said 47,500 blue-collar workers in the U.S. will get $7,000 profit-sharing checks in March. The checks are based on North American performance and are a record for the company.

The company has placed Vice Chairman Steve Girsky in charge of the European management board and is adding executives in preparation for restructuring. Factory closures and layoffs are likely but could provoke a fight with powerful labor unions.

Girsky has said GM intends to fix the European unit, made up of the Opel and Vauxhall brands, and keep it in the company. GM came close to selling the unit in 2009.

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These luxury cars have the highest theft rates

While some of the best-selling cars in the U.S. also top the most frequently stolen list each year because of their sheer numbers, another look at the statistics reveals which cars by percentage sold are the most likely to by targeted by thieves.

According to data recently released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the car most frequently stolen, based on the number of thefts per 1,000 vehicles sold during 2009, was the $92,000 Audi S8 sport/luxury sedan, with 8.81 thefts per 1,000 vehicles produced. That comes out to just two out of the 227 S8s that were sold in the U.S., so it’s hardly a widespread epidemic.

Still, NHTSA’s statistics prove the point that the flashiest cars on the road can also be the most popular — for the wrong reasons.

Forbes.com slideshow: Cars with the highest theft rates

The Ford Shelby Mustang GT had the next highest theft rate for 2009, with 8.61 vehicles per 1,000 stolen. Also in the top five were the sportiest variant of BMW’s midsize sedan, the M5 (7.58/1,000), retro-flavored Dodge Charger full-size sedan (6.47/1,000) and the no longer produced Honda S2000 roadster (5.60/1,000).

The remainder of the top 10 list of cars with the highest theft rates for 2009 included the midsize Mitsubishi Galant sedan (5.11/1,000), the full-size Chrysler 300 sedan (4.57/1,000), the Infiniti M luxury sedan (4.32/1,000) the Cadillac STS luxury sedan (4.28/1,000) and the Mercedes-Benz CL-Class luxury sport coupe (3.91/1,000).

By brand, the most frequently stolen cars per 1,000 sold, were Chrysler products, with the Chrysler Sebring, Sebring Convertible and PT Cruiser, and the Dodge Avenger and Dodge Caliber making the top 20 in addition to the aforementioned 300 and Charger.

General Motors came in second, with four vehicles among top 20, with the Pontiac G5 and G6 and Chevrolet Impala joining the STS.

While the Toyota Camry was the most purloined model overall in terms of sheer numbers, at 781 stolen in 2009, it ranked 50th as a percentage of sales at just 1.74 per 1,000 cars. The least-stolen model per capita in 2009 was the since-discontinued Mercury Mariner SUV, with a theft rate of 0.08 per 1,000 units, or a mere two vehicles out of 25,682 sold that year.

Fortunately, NHTSA reports that the number of auto thefts reported each year is on the decline. “The agency believes that the theft rate reduction could be the result of several factors including the increased use of standard antitheft devices, vehicle parts marking, increased and improved prosecution efforts by law enforcement organizations and increased public awareness,” according to a NHTSA statement.

So what can you do to ensure that thieves won’t target your vehicular pride and joy? Start by correcting bad habits, such as leaving the keys in the ignition when the vehicle is unattended. Keep the windows and sunroof closed, and don’t hide a spare key where an astute crook might find it.

If you have a garage, park inside it, not merely out on the driveway, and make sure both entry doors are closed and locked at all times. If you park on the street, choose a spot close to other vehicles, turn your wheels toward the curb and engage the emergency brake to make it more difficult to be towed. Away from home, park in a well-lit or well-traveled area after dark, and avoid using long-term parking lots–take a taxi to the airport instead.

Experts also advise having your car or truck’s vehicle identification number (often called a “VIN,” it’s found on the driver’s side of the dashboard at the bottom of the windshield, as well as on the model’s title) etched on the windshield and major components to make them more difficult for chop shops to sell as replacement parts.

Beyond the common-sense basics, use an antitheft device, which will often also warrant a discount on your car insurance. A steering-wheel lock like the popular “Club” is simple, inexpensive and can be as effective as costlier alarm systems. A thief wants to get a vehicle as quickly as possible, and anything that might slow him or her down can be enough of a deterrent to instead choose another model on the block. Having a simple ignition “kill switch” installed in a hidden location makes it more difficult for a crook to start a car or truck and drive it away.

Advanced vehicle recovery devices like LoJack and General Motors’ OnStar system use technology similar to that employed in satellite navigation systems to help police departments locate cars and trucks if they are stolen. They can be pricey and require a monthly subscription, but if you own an expensive high-profile car, the cost is usually warranted.

© 2011 Forbes.com

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