GM Resumes Dividend, Hikes Buyback Authorization To $5 Billion

General Motors has announced this morning that, after more than 2 years, the company is re-instating its dividend and share buybacks. 

A company press release said on Friday morning that the company’s Board of Directors “has authorized the reinstatement of a quarterly cash dividend on the company’s outstanding common stock at a rate of $0.09 per share.”

It continues: “The first dividend will be paid on Sept. 15, 2022, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on Aug. 31, 2022.”

Regarding stock purchases, the company said that its Board “increased the capacity under the company’s existing repurchase program to $5.0 billion of common stock, up from the $3.3 billion previously remaining under the program.”

CEO Mary Barra commented: “GM is investing more than $35 billion through 2025 to advance our growth plan, including rapidly expanding our electric vehicle portfolio and creating a domestic battery manufacturing infrastructure.”

She continued: “Progress on these key strategic initiatives has improved our visibility and strengthened confidence in our capacity to fund growth while also returning capital to shareholders.”

Paul Jacobson, GM chief financial officer, commented: “GM’s consistently strong earnings, margins and cash flow, our investment-grade balance sheet, and the achievement of several significant milestones in our growth strategy enables us to invest aggressively to accelerate our all-electric future while also supporting the return of excess free cash flow to shareholders, aligned with our long-term capital allocation strategy.”

The company PR then went on to talk about some of its recent operating milestones, which include:

• The largest single investment announcement in the company’s history: more than $7 billion in four Michigan manufacturing sites, including a new Ultium Cells LLC plant in Lansing, that will create 4,000 new jobs and retain 1,000

• The launches of the GMC HUMMER EV Pickup and Cadillac LYRIQ, the first vehicles developed on GM’s Ultium Platform

• Significant customer demand for the GMC HUMMER EV Pickup and SUV, the Cadillac LYRIQ and the Chevrolet Silverado EV

• The first customer deliveries for the BrightDrop Zevo 600 electric delivery vehicle, with volume commitments from leading companies including FedEx, Walmart, Verizon and Merchants Fleet

• The Ultium Cells plant in Warren, Ohio is ready to come on-line this month; significant construction progress has been made at the Ultium Cells plants in Spring Hill, Tennessee, and Lansing, Michigan, which open in 2023 and 2024, respectively

• Combined, these Ultium Cells plants are expected to create 6,000 construction jobs and 5,100 operations jobs when they are at full capacity, and the location of a fourth U.S. cell manufacturing plant will be announced soon

• The successful execution of binding agreements to secure all the battery raw material GM requires to scale EV production to more than 1 million units of annual capacity in North America by 2025

• The historic launch of a fully driverless commercial ride share service in San Francisco by Cruise, GM’s majority-owned subsidiary