I think the value of the stock is going to increase from its present value. It has taken a very harsh beating probably more than was due.
Having come out of bankruptcy, with no short term debts and restructuring in place, the only way for a company that is at its lowest is up. The company has material assets of a huge magnitude.
Historically the company has done reasonably well which is indicative of sound fundamentals. What happened was on account of a general economic crisis.
As happens always, the recession will most certainly end and that too probably not too far into the future. It is therefore to be expected that companies that are fundamentally sound will spring back.
The GM trading publicly right now is still the bankrupt GM. A new company was formed to buy the core assets of old GM, including the name and brand, while old GM sells off its European operations and other assets. New GM is not yet a publicly traded company and doesn’t plan to issue an IPO until 2010.
So I would say no, it’s not a good time to buy GM stock. You’d be buying stock in a bankrupt company that just sold its most profitable core businesses to another company, is divesting itself of its international operations, and will shortly be de-listed.
Which is why I can’t understand why anyone would give a penny per share for the stock. Isn’t the old GM being liquidated with the shareholders getting nothing?
They’re in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which is reorganization as opposed to liquidation (that’s Chapter 7). But given that they’re selling a hefty chunk of the business, I really don’t know what will be left to reorganize.
My best guess is that right now people trading it are trying to take advantage of penny-stock swings, or shorting the hell out of it, or both.