Mizuho Lowers General Motors (NYSE:GM) Price Target to $55.00

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) had its target price cut by Mizuho from $63.00 to $55.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the auto manufacturer’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on GM. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $51.00 price target (down from $64.00) on shares of General Motors in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of General Motors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of General Motors from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Cowen began coverage on shares of General Motors in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered General Motors from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $35.00 in a report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $59.33.

General Motors Price Performance

Shares of GM opened at $43.91 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The business’s fifty day moving average is $47.46 and its 200 day moving average is $50.37. General Motors has a 12-month low of $38.96 and a 12-month high of $61.24. The stock has a market cap of $43.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The auto manufacturer reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that General Motors will post 11.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. General Motors’s payout ratio is 7.80%.

General Motors declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the auto manufacturer to buy up to 12.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Motors

In other news, Director Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. purchased 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $50.66 per share, with a total value of $607,920.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 13,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $694,751.24. This trade represents a 700.12 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On General Motors

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Motors in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of General Motors in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new stake in General Motors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in General Motors during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. grew its stake in General Motors by 551.9% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 502 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. 92.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.