General Motors (NYSE:GM) to Repurchase $6.00 billion in Stock

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th, RTT News reports. The company plans 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 programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

General Motors Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of GM stock opened at $49.22 on Friday. General Motors has a 12 month low of $38.94 and a 12 month high of $61.24. The stock has a market cap of $48.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.35.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The auto manufacturer reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.17. General Motors had a net margin of 3.21% and a return on equity of 15.29%. On average, research analysts expect that General Motors will post 11.44 earnings per share for the current year.

General Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. General Motors’s payout ratio is currently 7.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of General Motors from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $56.00 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. HSBC cut shares of General Motors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $58.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com cut shares of General Motors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of General Motors from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of General Motors from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. purchased 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $50.66 per share, for a total transaction of $607,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,714 shares in the company, valued at $694,751.24. This trade represents a 700.12 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

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.