General Motors Co.’s stock jumped 7.7% early Tuesday, after the auto giant blew past estimates for the fourth quarter and offered upbeat guidance.
“Consensus is growing that the U.S. economy, the job market and auto sales will continue to be resilient, and at GM, we expect healthy industry sales of about 16 million units with the mix of EVs continuing to grow,” Chief Executive Mary Barra wrote in a letter to shareholders.
The company
GM,
posted net income of $2.102 billion, or $1.59 a share, for the quarter, up from $1.999 billion, or $1.39 a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $1.24, ahead of the $1.16 FactSet consensus.
Revenue fell to $42.980 billion from $43.108 billion, but was also ahead of the $38.809 billion FactSet consensus.
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In addition to its internal-combustion-engine models, such as the 2024 Chevrolet Traverse and 2025 Chevrolet Equinox, the company aims to grow its electric-vehicle business. The company also plans to relaunch its self-driving Cruise business, said Barra.
California regulators revoked Cruise’s license to operate in San Francisco after accusing the company of not being forthcoming enough about an Oct. 3 incident in which a Cruise driverless car hit a pedestrian who had already been struck by another car. After briefly stopping, the Cruise vehicle pulled to the side of the road, dragging the victim beneath it for about 20 feet—a detail not immediately relayed to authorities investigating the crash.
Cruise later suspended all operations of its driverless cars. Cruise co-founder and Chief Executive Kyle Vogt resigned in November. In December nine “key leaders” were dismissed as the company said it would lay off about 24% of its workforce.
“In our EV business, we expect our U.S. portfolio will become variable profit positive in the second half of the year based on our current expectations for EV demand and production growth, strong interest in our vehicles, lower commodity prices and other factors,” she said.
While the pace of growth in EVs has slowed and created some uncertainty, many third-party forecasts are calling for U.S. EV deliveries to rise from about 7% of the industry in 2023 to at least 10% in 2024, which would imply another year of record sales, she added.
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The company is now expecting 2024 EPS of $8.50 to $9.50, while FactSet is expecting $7.75. It expects capex of $10.5 billion to $11.5 billion, including investments in its battery cell manufacturing joint ventures.
The stock has fallen 2.5% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500
SPX,
has gained 22.7%.
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