General Motors Company (GM)
General Motors is a historic American car manufacturer currently navigating the massive shift from petrol engines to electric vehicles.
Is General Motors Company a good stock for a UK beginner?
The honest version: General Motors is a historic American car manufacturer currently navigating the massive shift from petrol engines to electric vehicles.
Over about 2 years to 2026-07-31. This is the share price only - reinvesting the dividends would add to it. And it's the USD return - as a UK investor your actual £ return also moves with the exchange rate. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.
Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.
Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.
GM becomes a leader in autonomous driving and electric battery technology.
New tech-focused competitors capture the majority of the future car market.
What does General Motors Company do?
General Motors designs, builds, and sells a wide range of vehicles, from family SUVs to heavy-duty trucks, under iconic brands like Chevrolet and Cadillac. Vehicle sales to dealerships and customers generate the revenue, alongside heavy investment in new battery technology and self-driving software. The big question is how smoothly they can shift their vast manufacturing base over to electric cars without eroding their profit margins.
On our factor screen it looks strongest on momentum and value, and weakest on growth.
- ✓Pays a dividend - about 0.8% a year
- !Thin profits - turns only about 1% of sales into profit
- !High P/E of 39 - big growth is already priced in
- !Carries a lot of debt - roughly 2.0x its equity
- Value screens high (77/100)
- Momentum screens high (80/100)
- Massive scale and established global brand recognition
- Strong portfolio of popular truck and SUV models
- Significant investment in future-facing electric vehicle technology
- Quality screens low (13/100)
- Growth screens low (13/100)
- Potential for supply chain issues to halt production
- Regulatory changes regarding emissions and electric vehicle mandates
- High debt levels often associated with capital-intensive manufacturing
What do General Motors Company's numbers mean?
How much money does General Motors Company make?
Revenue and profit by quarter, and how much of each sale turns into profit.
Does General Motors Company pay a dividend?
Yes - General Motors Company currently pays a dividend of about 0.8% a year (the yearly payout as a share of the price). A dividend is a slice of profit handed to shareholders; the yield moves as the price moves, and a company can cut or stop it.
When does General Motors Company report earnings, and how did recent quarters go?
General Motors Company is next scheduled to report on about 2026-10-20 - dates can move, and we don't predict results; this just tells you when to look.
Each quarter a company reports its results against what analysts expected. ‘Beating’ or ‘missing’ is about that expectation, not whether the business is doing well in absolute terms.
| Reported | Expected EPS: The earnings per share analysts expected for the quarter - the average of their forecasts. 'Beating' or 'missing' is measured against this number. | Actual EPS | vs expected |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-21 | $3.19 | $3.57 | Beat +12% |
| 2026-04-28 | $2.64 | $3.70 | Beat +40% |
| 2026-01-27 | $2.27 | $2.51 | Beat +11% |
| 2025-10-21 | $2.32 | $2.80 | Beat +21% |
| 2025-07-22 | $2.48 | $2.53 | Beat +2% |
| 2025-04-29 | $2.67 | $2.78 | Beat +4% |
Across the last 6 quarters here, General Motors Company came in ahead of what analysts expected 6 times. One quarter is noise, not a trend.
See who else reports over the next two weeks →
Reported vs expected earnings per share (EPS) from published results; the expectation is the analyst consensus, not our view. Report dates are estimates that can move.
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An illustrative range for the year ahead, with the assumption behind each case — not a prediction or a price target.
What are the pros and cons of General Motors Company?
How many points the write-up makes each way — a balance check, not a score or verdict.
- Massive scale and established global brand recognition
- Strong portfolio of popular truck and SUV models
- Significant investment in future-facing electric vehicle technology
- Very thin profit margins make the business sensitive to rising costs
- Heavy competition from both traditional rivals and new electric-only manufacturers
- High sensitivity to economic downturns which typically hit car sales hard
- Potential for supply chain issues to halt production
- Regulatory changes regarding emissions and electric vehicle mandates
- High debt levels often associated with capital-intensive manufacturing
The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.
- A sustained, significant increase in net profit margins
- A major breakthrough in battery technology that drastically lowers production costs
Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →
This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-01 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.