Marshall Wace LLP Buys Shares of 600,000 General Motors (NYSE:GM)

Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in General Motors (NYSE:GM) (TSE:GMM.U) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 600,000 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $31,962,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Motors during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in General Motors during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in General Motors in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in General Motors by 9,960.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of General Motors by 551.9% during the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 502 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. 92.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Motors Price Performance

NYSE:GM opened at $44.55 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a PE ratio of 7.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $47.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. General Motors has a 52 week low of $38.96 and a 52 week high of $61.24.

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

General Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. General Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.80%.

General Motors declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the auto manufacturer to buy up to 12.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of General Motors from $73.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of General Motors from $63.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays downgraded General Motors from an “overweight” rating to a “negative” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on General Motors from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered General Motors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, April 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.72.

Insider Transactions at General Motors

In related news, Director Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. purchased 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $50.66 per share, with a total value of $607,920.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 13,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,751.24. This represents a 700.12 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

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.