General Motors (GM) shares climbed over 3.6% Thursday after Piper Sandler decided the automaker deserves a much higher valuation. The firm upgraded the stock from Neutral to Overweight and jacked up its price target from $66 to $98, a confidence boost that's hard to ignore.
Analyst Alexander Potter laid out the case pretty simply: GM "makes a lot of money" and has been crushing it over the past year, according to Investing.com. Sometimes the best investment thesis isn't complicated.
What makes GM particularly attractive right now? The company has relatively low exposure to Chinese competition compared to peers, which means it can keep generating cash, maintain pricing power, and continue those juicy stock buybacks. Piper Sandler expects earnings estimates to keep climbing, creating what they call a "positive" setup that justifies both the upgrade and the aggressive price target jump.
Electric Vehicle Dominance Taking Shape
The timing of this upgrade coincides with GM's impressive showing in the electric vehicle space. In 2025, the company managed to land three models in the top 10 bestselling EVs in America, more than any other automaker. That's not just participation, that's leadership.
The Chevrolet Equinox EV led the entire U.S. market with 57,195 units sold, more than doubling sales from the previous year. GM also secured the No. 6 spot with the Chevy Blazer EV at 22,637 units and No. 8 with the Cadillac Lyriq at 20,971 units. When you're putting up those numbers, it's easier for analysts to get excited about your prospects.
Wall Street Consensus Building
Piper Sandler isn't alone in its optimism. Wedbush maintained its Outperform rating in December and raised its target from $75 to $95. UBS and Goldman Sachs both kept their buy ratings with revised targets of $97 and $93, up from $85 and $81 respectively.
Not everyone's on board, though. Wells Fargo maintained an Underweight rating with a target of just $48, though even they nudged it up slightly from $46.
General Motors shares were trading at $84.90 Thursday, hitting a new 52-week high and suggesting the market is starting to agree with the bulls.
