Carret Asset Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in General Motors (NYSE:GM)

Carret Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) by 17.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,881 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock after selling 1,650 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Motors were worth $420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GM. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in General Motors during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in General Motors during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in General Motors during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new position in General Motors during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. increased its stake in General Motors by 9,960.0% during 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 last quarter. 92.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Motors Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of GM opened at $48.34 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.42. General Motors has a one year low of $38.96 and a one year high of $61.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $49.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.46.

General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) last issued its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 3.21%. Sell-side analysts forecast that General Motors will post 11.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

General Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. General Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.80%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. bought 12,000 shares of General Motors stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were bought at an average price 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 represents a 700.12 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on GM. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of General Motors in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $73.00 price target on General Motors in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. TD Cowen began coverage on General Motors in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded General Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $46.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on General Motors from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.89.

General Motors 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.