2009-06-09 14:22:40.312115+00 by Dan Lyke 2 comments
What I Learned Today: 0.000000435%. The U.S. Treasury has spent fifty billion bucks on GM for 60% of equity, implying a value of eighty three billion, but GM's all-time high in 2000 was fifty six billion.
comments in ascending chronological order (reverse):
#Comment Re: made: 2009-06-09 15:09:19.592793+00 by: JT [edit history]
I heard someone a few weeks ago bitching on Jon Stewart about the exact same problems with buying stocks from banks who were having issues.
edit: found it. It was Elizabeth Warren.
Part 1
Part 2
#Comment Re: made: 2009-06-09 15:43:00.604258+00 by: ebradway
The conceit of valuing a corporation using simple market cap is too seductive. GM's value and significance to the general economy extends much deeper than it's peak $56B market cap. GM directly employs about 250,000 people. GM's operations also create the market for thousands of smaller companies. By comparison, solvent Ford is still only worth $20B in market cap.
GM's failure is due entirely to stupid management. While the company increasingly dealt with costly labor - retirement and health costs - it also saw a rapidly expanding market. Last year, GM sold over 1M vehicles in China - 1/3rd of what it sold in the US - and a market that didn't even exist 5 years ago. How can you have such fast market growth and still drop the ball so hard?
GM has an amazing potential value. Until recently, GM was larger than Toyota - which has a market cap of $124B. GM could be worth more.