TLDR
- GM stock rose 3% to $79.29 on Thursday despite a 5.5% drop in Q3 U.S. vehicle sales.
- GM sold 670,974 vehicles in Q3, down from last year, with EV sales down sharply across the board.
- Toyota sales climbed 0.6%, helped by hybrids and EVs making up 57% of its mix.
- Honda posted a 9.3% sales jump, fueled by record hybrid demand.
- Wall Street rates GM a Strong Buy, with a price target implying about 40% upside.
General Motors stock (GM) climbed 3% to $79.29 on Thursday. The move came even as the automaker reported a 5.5% drop in third-quarter U.S. sales.
GM sold 670,974 new vehicles during the quarter. That’s down from the same period last year, when EV sales hit record highs.
The EV comparison explains a lot of the drop. Last year’s numbers were inflated by buyers rushing to grab a $7,500 federal EV incentive before it ended.
This year, GM’s EV sales fell hard. The Equinox EV was down 92% and the Hummer EV dropped 73%.
GM doesn’t have much hybrid presence to fall back on. Its only hybrid option is the Corvette, a gap that’s starting to show.
Toyota And Honda Pick Up The Slack
Toyota didn’t have that problem. Its sales rose 0.6% to 633,223 units, with electrified vehicles, including hybrids, up 28.5%.
That performance helped Toyota narrow the gap with GM to under 136,000 units. A year ago that gap was over 335,000.
Honda had an even stronger quarter. Its sales rose 9.3%, with hybrid sales topping 106,000 units, a company record.
“We’re finding more and more consumers are figuring out hybrids meet their needs,” said Lance Woelfer, head of American Honda’s U.S. sales.
High gas prices aren’t helping GM either. The national average sat at $4.41 a gallon, pressuring demand for the big trucks and SUVs GM leans on.
Where GM Is Still Winning
Not everything was down. GM’s affordable small SUV lineup, including the Chevy Trax and Buick Envista, had its best quarterly sales ever.
The Trailblazer was up 51%, Envista rose 18.4%, and the Trax gained 16.3%. GM also pointed to its continued lead in full-size pickups and fleet sales.
Cadillac was the weak spot, down 25% year to date. Every GM brand is lower so far this year.
GM president Duncan Aldred stayed upbeat, pointing to the upcoming next-gen Silverado and Sierra trucks. Those are expected to start reaching dealerships in Q4.
Despite the sales miss, Wall Street still likes the stock. GM carries a Strong Buy consensus based on 14 Buy ratings over the past three months.
The average price target sits at $111.14, implying roughly 40% upside from current levels.
Other automakers reporting Thursday included Stellantis, roughly flat with Ram up 29%; Nissan, up 1.4%; Hyundai, up about 3%; and Kia, up 7.8% with a record 236,659 units sold for the quarter.
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