In a major move to return cash back to shareholders, General Motors (GM) announced on June 11, 2024, that its Board of Directors has approved a new share repurchase authorization to repurchase up to $6 billion of the company's outstanding common stock. This comes after GM outperformed Wall Street estimates in the first quarter due to strong demand for gas-powered vehicles. The decision also follows a $10 billion stock buyback plan announced by GM in November 2023.
GM's focus on profitability is evident as it continues to grow and improve the profitability of its electric vehicle (EV) business while maintaining the profitability of its internal combustion engine (ICE) business. The company is deploying capital efficiently, allowing it to return cash to shareholders. In Q1 2024, GM increased its common stock dividend from $0.09 to $0.12 per share.
Despite the growing demand for EVs and GM's ambitious plans for electric vehicle production, the company has slightly adjusted its targets downwards. It now expects to produce 200,000-250,00 new electric vehicles in 2024, down from a previously stated target of 2oo,ooo-3oo,ooo. This adjustment does not seem to have affected GM's stock performance; the company's shares gained 1.4% following the buyback news after rising 4.1% on Monday.
GM's announcement of its new $6 billion share repurchase plan comes as Ford Motor (F) and Stellantis (STLA) lost ground on Tuesday, and Tesla (TSLA), the largest automaker by market capitalization, slid below a key level. GM's CFO Paul Jacobson said that the company is “growing and improving the profitability of our EV business,” adding that this allows them to continue returning cash to shareholders.
The Detroit-based automaker has not yet specified a timeline for the new $6 billion share repurchase plan but plans to complete the remaining $1.1 billion under the previous $10 billion stock buyback agreement by the end of Q2 2024. GM's shares have risen about 50% since the company announced its previous stock buyback plan in late November 2023.