General Motors Company (GM) To Increase Dividend Yield By 20% Despite 26% Dip In Profit

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) saw its fourth quarter earnings topple analyst’s estimates mostly  driven by strong sales on high margins SUV’s as well as trucks in North America on record low fuel costs. During an interview on CNBC, Chief Financial Officer, Chuck Stevens, affirmed that the company is in the process of increasing its dividend yield by 20% from $0.30 a share to $0.36.

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“Our planned increase in the dividend is very consistent with our stated objective, which is then to have a growing and sustained dividend underpinned by strong business performance. Announcing it today in conjunction with our strong 2014 performance as well as our expectation of better performance in 2015 including improved profitability in all four automotive regions is consistent with that objective,” said Mr. Stevens.

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) posted a 91% increase in profit for the fourth quarter with earnings per share coming in at $1.19, against analyst estimates of $0.83 on revenues of $39.6 billion. Stellar results for 2014 capped a tumultuous year for CEO, Marry Barra, who for the better part of last year grappled with the vehicle recalls menace.

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) posted a net income of $1.1 billion up from $900 million reported a year earlier. North America continued to act as a key market for the automaker accounting for a quarter of the total earnings, which the CFO attributes to increased sales of the SUVs and pickup trucks.

“I think when you look at our co-performance for 2014 a fourth quarter very strong performance. Overall EBITDA adjusted of $2.4 billion which was significantly higher than the consensus, and I think that was the biggest driver of the difference in EPS. Importantly that caps a very strong 2014 from a core underline performance perspective,” said Mr. Stevens.

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) might have posted impressive results for 2014, but investors are sure to question whether the upward trend in the auto industry is sustainable for the long haul. The CFO on his part remains confident that the expansion cycle in the U.S. still has some room to run at the back of low-interest rates in the country.

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