GM reports first-quarter earnings for 2024

GM on Tuesday said it made $2.97 billion from January through March, with revenue increasing 7.6% over the same period a year ago to just over $43 billion. That topped the $41.15 billion that analysts polled by FactSet were calling for. Excluding one-time items the company made $2.62 per share, easily beating Wall Street estimates of $2.13 per share.

Q1 takeaways for investors

Dan Ives of Wedbush said in a note to clients that GM delivered a solid performance as it concentrates on profitability and managing expenses. “This was a major ‘prove me’ quarter for GM and shows the long awaited turnaround now appears to be underway for Barra & Co.,” he wrote, referring to CEO Mary Barra.

GM’s better-than-forecast prices also allowed the company to raise its full year net income guidance slightly to a range of $10.1 billion to $11.5 billion, up from $9.8 billion to $11.2 billion. Adjusted 2024 earnings per share guidance rose to a range of $9 to $10 from $8.50 to $9.50.

Analysts are looking for earnings of $8.89 per share for the year. Shares of the company, which is planning to move its Detroit headquarters to a new downtown office building next year, jumped more than 5% in early morning trading.

GM drops prices, its EV sales and battery production rise

Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson said prices dropped a little because GM sold a higher share of lower-cost vehicles such as the Chevrolet Trax small SUV, which starts at $21,495 including shipping. “The portfolio as a whole has been pretty strong,” he said, noting that pickup truck sales were up 3% in the U.S.

The company still has assumed that prices will drop 2% to 2.5% for the full year, but has not seen the decline yet, Jacobson said.

Retail sales of electric vehicles rose during the quarter, and GM is producing more of its own batteries, he said. The company is on track to hit a mid single-digit profit margin on EVs next year.

CEO Mary Barra, in a letter to shareholders, said that GM is seeing “good early sales momentum” for vehicles like the Cadillac LYRIQ, an electric SUV. The company has also benefited from a significant drop in the cost of battery cells and lower raw material prices, she added.