General Motors: A look at deliveries over the past year

General Motors (NYSE: GM) is in the midst of a dispute with labor unions that has now entered its fourth week with no resolution in sight. The company has undertaken restructuring actions over the past year that have included changes to its product line-up, factory closures and job cuts.

Last week, the company reported its vehicle deliveries for the third quarter of 2019. Looking at the past five quarters, deliveries in the US have gone from a negative trend to a positive one. Let’s take a look at this performance:

In the third quarter of 2018, GM delivered nearly 700,000 vehicles with average transaction prices reaching a record of $35,974. Sales, however, fell 11% year-over-year as the impact of hurricanes increased sales a year ago and depressed them this year.

In the fourth quarter, deliveries rose sequentially to 785,229, helped by strong sales in crossovers and pickups. However, on a year-over-year basis, sales were down around 3%. In the first quarter of 2019, 80% of the company’s deliveries were comprised of trucks, SUVs and crossovers. Sales were down 7% year-over-year due to a comparably strong year-ago period.

In the second quarter of 2019, deliveries picked up sequentially helped by a 17% increase in crossovers. Deliveries were down 1.5% year-over-year, but truck and crossover deliveries helped offset lower passenger car sales. In the third quarter of 2019, GM reported an increase of 6.3% year-over-year in total deliveries to 738,638 vehicles in the US.

Also read: Companies that announced major restructurings in 2019

GM’s revamp of its model line-up and its increased focus on SUVs, crossovers and trucks helped bring a turnaround in its deliveries over the past one year. However, the ongoing strike is taking a huge toll on its operations in the US. The company has also cut several operations in Canada and has idled a plant in Mexico. The strike is expected to have a meaningful impact on its fourth quarter deliveries.  

Shares have dropped 12% in the past one month. The stock was down in afternoon trade on Monday.

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