Latest news with #EVsales
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
3 Reasons to Buy This Top Auto Stock Before It's Too Late
General Motors has reduced its shares outstanding dramatically. GM is rapidly expanding its EV sales in the U.S. and lowering costs. The automaker's restructured business in China brought positive results. 10 stocks we like better than General Motors › General Motors (NYSE: GM) may be an afterthought when it comes to investments for many, but it may also be the best automotive stock for investors to get their hands on today. Not only does the company thrive with sales of full-size trucks and SUVs, but it's making strong progress with electric vehicles (EVs) and returning value to shareholders at an impressive clip. Here are three reasons GM might be the next stock you want to buy. There are two primary ways for companies to return value to shareholders: through a dividend or through share repurchases. In the case of share repurchases, as the company buys back shares and retires them, the earnings per share increases, which drives the value up. General Motors has been incredible at returning value to shareholders through share buybacks, and you can see how the stock price has responded as the number of shares outstanding declines. It started in late 2023, when GM announced a significant $10 billion accelerated share repurchase program, which was completed by the fourth quarter. GM approved a further $6 billion buyback in June 2024, and the automaker also increased its dividend by 25%. The automaker's cash flow is capable of handling such movements. GM generated $14 billion in adjusted automotive free cash flow in 2024 and returned roughly $7.6 billion to shareholders via dividends and buybacks, leaving plenty of liquidity for growth and strategic moves to offset tariff impacts. When it comes to EVs, it's not really a matter of if, but when they consume the roads globally. It's a tricky thing to balance sales of highly profitable gasoline-powered SUVs and trucks while trying to sell EVs, but General Motors has found a balance. While posting strong financial results driven by its internal combustion engine line, the company also posted EV sales up 94% during the first quarter, grabbing an impressive 10.4% market share in the U.S. That parks GM in the No. 2 spot for EV sales in the U.S., and marks Chevrolet as the industry's fastest-growing EV brand, driven by the Equinox and Blazer EVs. In even better news, roughly 60% of the EV buyers are trading in a non-GM vehicle, bringing more consumers into the brand. GM will still need to work diligently on reducing EV costs, especially batteries, for this to become an important chunk of its business, but it is the future of the industry, and GM is well-positioned in the U.S. for now. China's market has been engulfed in a brutal price war, driven by a plethora of competitors in a blossoming EV market, and foreign automakers have paid the price -- they are struggling in China right now, big time. Fortunately, GM recognized this early and made a massive restructuring effort, which included rightsizing operations, launching new vehicles, and optimizing dealer costs and inventory. All in, the charge would cost GM $5 billion in restructuring costs, but it did manage to report encouraging results in China during the final quarter of 2024. Following the introduction of new vehicles, sales sequentially surged 40% during the fourth quarter, the largest jump since the second quarter of 2022. As far as General Motors goes, the company is firing on all cylinders right now. Not only is it selling gasoline-powered vehicles at a high clip, and highly profitably, the company is expanding its EV prowess. It's also buying back shares at a clip so rapidly that its stock has only soared as a result. All this means General Motors is one of, if not the top, automotive stocks to buy now. Before you buy stock in General Motors, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and General Motors wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $828,224!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 Daniel Miller has positions in General Motors. The Motley Fool recommends General Motors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 3 Reasons to Buy This Top Auto Stock Before It's Too Late was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Tesla faces collapsing sales in Canada's Québec province, with new registrations tumbling 85%
Tesla sales in Québec plunged 85% in the first quarter, mirroring sharp declines seen in Europe. Canada has frozen $43 million in Tesla EV rebates due to Trump's tariffs and fraud concerns. Musk's DOGE work sparked backlash, boycotts, and dealership vandalism across the US and Europe. Tesla's sales woes have reached Canada. Data from the vehicle registration authority in the province of Québec shows a dramatic decline in Tesla registrations in the first quarter of 2025. Only 524 new Tesla vehicles were registered in Québec between January and March 2025, down over 85% from the 5,097 units logged in the final months of 2024. The company's top-selling Model Y saw the steepest drop in terms of pure numbers, falling from 3,274 units in the final quarter of 2024 to 360 in the first quarter of 2025. The Model 3, Tesla's cheapest car, plunged from 1,786 to just 96 units over the same period, a fall of 94%. While the drop is precipitous, it should be noted that auto sales are generally lower in the first quarter of the year than later in the year. Though confined to one region of Canada, the collapse mirrors similar issues in Europe, where Tesla sales fell by nearly 50% in April despite overall EV demand continuing to grow. In Québec, as in Europe, demand for electric vehicles remains strong, suggesting that Tesla's slump is less about market conditions and more about the brand itself. Several factors appear to be converging. Tesla has been excluded from Canada's federal EV rebate program, with $43 million in rebates frozen and each individual claim now under review. Transport Minister Chrystia Freeland ordered the freeze in March following a last-minute surge in Tesla rebate applications — from 300 a day to nearly 5,800 — which triggered a probe into possible abuse. Freeland also said that Tesla would remain ineligible for future incentives as long as President Donald Trump's 25% tariffs on Canadian goods are in place. In parallel, provinces, including British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, and Manitoba, have removed Tesla from their rebate programs. Tesla's registration drop in Québec also comes amid a broader global backlash, especially in Europe, against CEO Elon Musk, who has endorsed a number of European political parties, including Germany's far-right AfD party and Britain's populist Reform UK party. In North America, Musk's role leading the Department of Government Efficiency has led to protests, boycotts, and vandalism of Tesla dealerships across at least a dozen states. Musk said this week he was stepping away from DOGE after months of involvement as a "special government employee." Federal law stipulates that those with this title cannot serve for more than 130 days in a 365-day period. Tesla's shares, which had come under pressure during Musk's DOGE stint, began rebounding in April after he announced he would step back from government work and "spend 24/7 at work" on his companies. In a Q&A published by Ars Technica on Tuesday, he said he'd been too involved in politics since wading into the 2024 presidential race last year — a campaign he heavily financed to the tune of nearly $300 million. In a sit-down with Bloomberg at the Qatar Economic Forum last week, he said he's no longer going to be spending big on politics, like he did in the 2024 election. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CBC
2 days ago
- Automotive
- CBC
Tesla registrations down 90 per cent in Quebec in 1st quarter of 2025
Social Sharing Quebec EV buyers' relationship with Tesla is showing signs of souring as sales in the province plummeted in the first quarter of 2025. Only 524 Teslas were registered in Quebec between Jan. 1 and March 31, according to Quebec's auto insurance board, the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec. That's a 90 per cent drop from the previous quarter when 5,097 of the electric automaker's cars were registered in the province, as first reported by Le Devoir. The data, also obtained by CBC News, shows that Tesla registrations in Quebec — Canada's largest EV market, including for Tesla — rose 30 per cent from 2023 to 2024 before nosediving in early 2025. And though CEO Elon Musk and his involvement in the Trump administration has "absolutely" had an impact on sales, says Daniel Breton, president of Electric Mobility Canada, the reasons go beyond a general dislike of the EV company's founder, with tariffs and rebate cutbacks likely contributing to the decline. The federal EV rebate program Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles (iZEV) ended March 31, and Quebec's program was paused between Feb. 1 and April 1. Quebec-based EV buyers used to be able to stack the rebates, benefitting from as much as $12,000 off the cost of a new vehicle. "Some dealers told me that … basically the message was, well, wait until April," said Breton, whose group is focused on advocacy for electric transportation. "Because the [provincial] rebate was about to come back." Breton believes more fulsome data for the same time period will show that Tesla isn't the only EV maker to take a hit in Quebec's market. According to preliminary S&P Global data, electric vehicle registrations in Quebec declined 65 per cent. Also hurting sales could be the 25 per cent tariff on U.S.-made EVs, including Tesla, Rivian and Lucid cars, imposed by the federal government in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's levies. "Now that the [Quebec] rebate is back, we'll see what happens with the sales of EVs in general and Tesla in particular," said Breton, who has owned a Model 3 Tesla for four years. "I'm really disappointed in what Elon Musk has been doing for the past year or two. So I hope that they find a way to resolve this," he said. "To me, Elon Musk is really hurting the brand." The combined effect of Musk's politics and tariffs have been felt outside of Quebec, with Tesla sales dropping 49 per cent year-over-year, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association. WATCH | Tesla and Canadian politics: Tesla caught in political controversy amid U.S. imposed tariffs on Canadian imports 2 months ago Duration 3:40 This week, the Vancouver International Auto Show removed U.S. electric carmaker Tesla from its event following reports of vandalism and protests at Tesla dealerships in B.C. and across Canada. Sean Thompson, the co-owner of Factor E, a Canadian company that repairs electric vehicles and has recently started buying and selling Teslas, says business has been rough. In addition to working for the Trump administration, which has repeatedly threatened Canadian sovereignty and imposed damaging tariffs that have upended financial markets, Musk has made dismissive comments about Canada, including saying on X — the social media platform he owns — that it is "not a real country." He has also faced significant criticism for amplifying and endorsing racist and antisemitic conspiracy theories on X and made a gesture at Trump's inauguration many interpreted as a Nazi salute. And Tesla is also under investigation in Canada after the company claimed to have sold 8,653 vehicles in the last three days of the federal rebate program, which would have amounted to $43 million in rebate claims. That questionable number raised suspicions, leading to the probe by the federal government. Despite some of the current concerns, Anne Picard, a Tesla Model Y owner from Dorval, Que., has owned two Teslas for eight years — and says she wouldn't buy anything else. "I don't have enough trust in [other companies] to give the same level of reliability," she said. She said anyone who can should buy an electric vehicle and believes EV consumers should separate their political convictions from their consumer decisions. "The electric vehicle wouldn't be what it is today if it weren't for Elon Musk," said Picard, who works in IT project management, after parking her Tesla at Montreal's Jean Talon Market. Philippe Bergeron Bélanger, who was charging his electric Audi Q4 in Montreal's Plateau neighbourhood Thursday, said he, too, tries to "leave politics out of my choices," but he won't be replacing his car with a Tesla when its lease is up in a year and a half. Chinese EVs once provided an affordable alternative, Bergeron Bélanger noted, but not since Canada slapped more than 100 per cent tariffs on those cars. "I don't feel like having an awkward debate at family dinners or with friends. Otherwise, [Tesla] probably would have been in my top three," said Bergeron Bélanger, who is a managing partner at an investment firm and says he doesn't agree with Musk's actions but is making the choice more based on how polarizing owning the car itself has become. Picard, on the other hand, believes that will blow over soon — if it hasn't already. " C'est un feu de paille," she said, using a French expression that translates to "straw fire" and is the equivalent of "a flash in the pan."
CTV News
2 days ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
Car shoppers pessimistic about Canada's zero-emissions vehicle sales target: survey
An electric vehicle charger is seen in Ottawa on June 27, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang A new survey has found that the majority of car buyers don't think the Canadian government can achieve its target of 100 per cent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035, as interest in electric vehicle purchases remains largely unchanged from last year. The survey from consumer insights firm J.D. Power found that 75 per cent of new-vehicle shoppers are not confident the 2035 target will be reached. The survey also found that 28 per cent of respondents are 'very likely' or 'somewhat likely' to consider an EV for their next vehicle purchase, down from 29 per cent last year and 34 per cent in 2023. Canadian interest in EVs is much lower than in the United States, where 59 per cent of those surveyed said they are either 'very likely' or 'somewhat likely' to purchase an electric vehicle. The federal government paused an incentive program in January that offered Canadians rebates of up to $5,000 when buying or leasing electric vehicles. The online survey of nearly 4,000 potential new vehicle buyers found that pause had a negative effect on 42 per cent of those who were likely to consider getting an EV. The polling industry's professional body, the Canadian Research Insights Council, says online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 29, 2025. The Canadian Press
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Report: Electric cars lose more than half their value in two years
Electric cars are losing more than half their value within two years, according to a new report. Analysis by Cox Automotive has suggested that a 24-month-old battery car sold to the trade in April on average retained just 47 per cent of its original new cost. However, two years earlier, an EV of the same age profile was - on average - holding on to 83 per cent of its new price. The dramatic acceleration in depreciation is being blamed on manufacturers who are caught in an unprecedented catch 22 scenario currently playing out in the automotive sector. With car makers being forced to increase their sales of EVs to meet Government-mandated targets, they are offering huge discounts on new models to make them more attractive to new customers in order to meet their quotas. But this is having a significant knock-on impact for residual prices, as drivers are seeing more value for money buying new rather than opting for a nearly-new second-hand EV, which has seen used prices tumble. The Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate introduced to law last January requires mainstream car manufacturers to sell an increasing share of EVs every year between now and 2035. Failure to adhere to these quotas can result in significant fines of £12,000 for every car sold below the required threshold for that year. In 2024, the minimum quota was for 22 per cent of all deliveries by manufacturers to be zero-emission electric cars. However, the target jumps to 28 per cent this year, 33 per cent in 2026 and 80 per cent by 2030. Officials reported that every mainstream brand achieved last year's 22 per cent EV sales mix - though at a huge cost to car companies. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) reported that makers lost a collective £4billion in discounted prices as they tried to make electric cars appear more attractive to petrol and diesel counterparts. Mike Hawes, chief exec at the trade body, described the scale of these discounts as 'unsustainable'. Labour's decision to force EV owners to pay car tax for the first time from April has also dampened demand for new models - and triggered further manufacturer discounts. Both Vauxhall and Abarth - the performance division of Fiat - have recently reduced prices of their electric cars so that they sit below a £40,000 expensive car tax supplement being imposed on new EVs starting from next year. But Cox Automotive Europe discounts are now having a huge knock-on effect on the second-hand market, because 'nearly new' used EVs are falling in value as a direct result. Second-hand electric vehicle prices are also taking a hit from the huge acceleration in available models coming to market, with March seeing a record 69,313 new electric cars entering the road. A rapid development of battery technology is also stinging the value of quickly outdated older EVs, while the emergence of new cheaper brands - predominantly from China - is also pushing second-hand values lower. As such, a two-year-old electric car today is now holding just 53 per cent of its original price. In contrast, the average diesel car selling to trade with the same age profile is retaining 30 per cent of its new value. When second-hand EV values were at their peak in 2022 - as a result of supply constraints around the Covid-19 pandemic - a two-year-old electric car was losing only 17 per cent of its showroom price. Philip Nothard, insight director at Cox Automotive Europe, said: 'The current performance of nearly-new EVs in the used market is still much lower than we would anticipate for vehicles in this age profile. 'The heavy discounts offered on new vehicles mean that consumers can pick up a brand-new model for the same price as a nearly-new model. 'This gives consumers very little incentive to consider them, which is a real blow to a market that needs all the incentives it can get its hands on.' On the flipside, EVs between three to five years old are performing much better. At auction, these vehicles have seen only a modest price drop of 15 per cent on average in the same time period as they aren't impacted as severely by heavy manufacturer discounts and tend to attract a different driver. Last month, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer was forced to water down Britain's electric vehicle sales targets in response to Donald Trump's watershed tariff announcement. The PM's new measures included additional leniencies in the ZEV mandate in a bid to 'support car makers'. And only last week, a leaked letter from transport minister Lilian Greenwood revealed that the Government is considering dumping the expensive car supplement - widely being referred to as the 'Tesla Tax' - for new electric cars in an effort to stir up more demand for green vehicles.
