General Motors (GM) hopes slow and steady wins the EV race after reporting strong sales growth in its electric vehicle segment. While its eyes are set on the top spot, which is currently occupied by Tesla, recent numbers suggest it is making strides.
“We expect GM to be again the #2 seller of electric vehicles in the U.S.,” the company said after announcing that first-quarter sales of EVs rose 94% year-over-year.
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U.S. sales rose by 17% in the quarter, with double-digit increases across the company’s four brands: Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, and Buick.
In fact, the company reported its best U.S. first quarter since 2018, with 693,363 deliveries. A total of 31,887 were EVs.
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“GM’s sales growth outpaced every other major automaker, and the driving force is our portfolio,” said Rory Harvey, GM executive VP and president of global markets. “We’re the industry leader in trucks and affordable small SUVs, Cadillac is growing significantly in luxury, and we have the broadest portfolio of EVs in the industry.”
The company claimed Chevy has the fastest-growing EV brand in the industry thanks to the Equinox EV, which saw a 31% increase in sales, and the Blazer EV.
General Motors’ first quarter deliveries benefit from shoppers getting ahead of tariffs.
GM looks to recover from Q4 loss
In late January, GM reported its fourth-quarter earnings and the results were disappointing.
The automaker said it lost $2.96 billion during Q4 2024 due to a $4 billion loss related to its Chinese joint venture with the state-owned SAIC. Excluding one-time charges, earnings per share totaled $1.92
GM’s net income fell 41% to $6 billion for the year, while revenue increased 9.1% to $187.4 billion.
Even then, the topic of discussion was the possibility of tariffs and their effect on GM’s bottom line. GM CEO Mary Barra seemed to have a plan.
“With respect to possible tariffs, we are working across our supply chain, logistics network, and assembly plants so that we are prepared to mitigate near-term impacts. Many of these actions are no cost or low cost,” Barra said.
Analyst updates ratings on GM, Ford
Last month, President Donald Trump unveiled his plan to levy a 25% tariff on all imported cars starting on April 3. A similar duty that goes into effect in May was also placed on the auto parts supply chain.
“President Trump’s decision to implement tariffs on imports of automobiles and automobile parts will protect and strengthen the U.S. automotive sector,” the White House said in a fact sheet published alongside the announcement, adding that action is designed to “end unfair trade practices that jeopardize U.S. national security.”
In a note published late last month, JPMorgan analyst Ryan Brinkman said the current tariff proposal could cost GM around $14 billion, nearly all of its 2024 earnings. The analyst estimated Ford’s impact would be around $6 billion.
“We estimate GM imports ~$56 billion of vehicles annually from Mexico and Canada, which after adjusting for content originating in the U.S. may amount to ~$38 billion—subject to a ~$10 billion tariff under a 25% rate,” Brinkman and his team said. “For parts, we estimate GM’s share of the ~$92 billion imported by the industry may be ~$4 billion, implying a total tariff exposure of ~$14 billion before coping mechanisms.”
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“We believe GM’s higher reliance on imports increases its vulnerability to proposed tariffs and creates more downside risk relative to peers,” Brinkman added.
Brinkman lowered his price target on GM by $11, taking it to $53 per share, and cut his target on Ford by $2 to $11 per share while maintaining an ‘overweight’ rating for both names.
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