|
Related Topics
|
We design, build and sell trucks, crossovers, cars and automobile parts worldwide. Cruise, formerly GM Cruise, is our global segment responsible for the development and commercialization of autonomous vehicle technology"
More About General Motors (GM)
General Motors Company (sometimes referred to as we, our, us, ourselves, the Company, General Motors, or GM) was incorporated as a Delaware corporation in 2009. We design, build and sell trucks, crossovers, cars and automobile parts worldwide. Cruise, formerly GM Cruise, is our global segment responsible for the development and commercialization of autonomous vehicle technology. We also provide automotive financing services through General Motors Financial Company, Inc. (GM Financial). Except for per share amounts or as otherwise specified, amounts presented within tables are stated in millions.
On July 31, 2017 we closed the sale of the Opel and Vauxhall businesses and certain other assets in Europe (the Opel/Vauxhall Business) to Peugeot, S.A. (PSA Group). On October 31, 2017 we closed the sale of the European financing subsidiaries and branches (the Fincos, and together with the Opel/Vauxhall Business, the European Business) to Banque PSA Finance S.A. and BNP Paribas Personal Finance S.A. The European Business is presented as discontinued operations in our consolidated financial statements for all periods presented. Unless otherwise indicated, information in this report relates to our continuing operations.
Automotive
Our automotive operations meet the demands of our customers through our automotive segments: GM North America (GMNA) and GM International (GMI). GMNA meets the demands of customers in North America with vehicles developed, manufactured and/or marketed under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC brands. GMI primarily meets the demands of customers outside North America with vehicles developed, manufactured and/or marketed under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC and Holden brands. We also have equity ownership stakes in entities that meet the demands of customers in other countries, primarily in China, with vehicles developed, manufactured and/or marketed under the Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and Wuling brands. In addition to the vehicles we sell through our dealer network to retail customers, we also sell vehicles directly or through our dealer network to fleet customers, including daily rental car companies, commercial fleet customers, leasing companies and governments.
Our customers can obtain a wide range of aftersale vehicle services and products through our dealer network, such as maintenance, light repairs, collision repairs, vehicle accessories and extended service warranties.
Competitive Position and Vehicle Sales
The principal factors that determine consumer vehicle preferences in the markets in which we operate include overall vehicle design, price, quality, available options, safety, reliability, fuel economy and functionality. Market leadership in individual countries in which we compete varies widely. We present both wholesale and total vehicle sales data to assist in the analysis of our revenue and our market share. Wholesale vehicle sales data consists of sales to GM's dealers and distributors as well as sales to the U.S. Government and excludes vehicles sold by our joint ventures. Wholesale vehicle sales data correlates to our revenue recognized from the sale of vehicles, which is the largest component of Automotive net sales and revenue. In the year ended December 31, 2019, 34% of our wholesale vehicle sales volume was generated outside the U.S
On July 31, 2017 we closed the sale of the Opel and Vauxhall businesses and certain other assets in Europe (the Opel/Vauxhall Business) to Peugeot, S.A. (PSA Group). On October 31, 2017 we closed the sale of the European financing subsidiaries and branches (the Fincos, and together with the Opel/Vauxhall Business, the European Business) to Banque PSA Finance S.A. and BNP Paribas Personal Finance S.A. The European Business is presented as discontinued operations in our consolidated financial statements for all periods presented. Unless otherwise indicated, information in this report relates to our continuing operations.
Automotive
Our automotive operations meet the demands of our customers through our automotive segments: GM North America (GMNA) and GM International (GMI). GMNA meets the demands of customers in North America with vehicles developed, manufactured and/or marketed under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC brands. GMI primarily meets the demands of customers outside North America with vehicles developed, manufactured and/or marketed under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC and Holden brands. We also have equity ownership stakes in entities that meet the demands of customers in other countries, primarily in China, with vehicles developed, manufactured and/or marketed under the Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and Wuling brands. In addition to the vehicles we sell through our dealer network to retail customers, we also sell vehicles directly or through our dealer network to fleet customers, including daily rental car companies, commercial fleet customers, leasing companies and governments.
Our customers can obtain a wide range of aftersale vehicle services and products through our dealer network, such as maintenance, light repairs, collision repairs, vehicle accessories and extended service warranties.
Competitive Position and Vehicle Sales
The principal factors that determine consumer vehicle preferences in the markets in which we operate include overall vehicle design, price, quality, available options, safety, reliability, fuel economy and functionality. Market leadership in individual countries in which we compete varies widely. We present both wholesale and total vehicle sales data to assist in the analysis of our revenue and our market share. Wholesale vehicle sales data consists of sales to GM's dealers and distributors as well as sales to the U.S. Government and excludes vehicles sold by our joint ventures. Wholesale vehicle sales data correlates to our revenue recognized from the sale of vehicles, which is the largest component of Automotive net sales and revenue. In the year ended December 31, 2019, 34% of our wholesale vehicle sales volume was generated outside the U.S
Product Pricing For General Motors
Several methods are used to promote our products, including the use of dealer, retail and fleet incentives such as customer rebates and finance rate support. The level of incentives is dependent upon the level of competition in the markets in which we operate and the level of demand for our products.
Cyclical And Seasonal Nature Of General Motor Earnings
The market for vehicles is cyclical and depends in part on general economic conditions, credit availability and consumer spending. Vehicle markets are also seasonal. Production varies from month to month. Vehicle model changeovers occur throughout the year as a result of new market entries
Relationship With Dealers
We market vehicles and automotive parts worldwide primarily through a network of independent authorized retail dealers. These outlets include distributors, dealers and authorized sales, service and parts outlets. The number of authorized dealerships were 4,743 in GMNA and 7,907 in GMI at December 31, 2019. We and our joint ventures enter into a contract with each authorized dealer agreeing to sell to the dealer one or more specified product lines at wholesale prices and granting the dealer the right to sell those vehicles to retail customers from an approved location. Our dealers often offer more than one GM brand at a single dealership in a number of our markets. Authorized dealers offer parts, accessories, service and repairs for GM vehicles in the product lines that they sell using GM parts and accessories. Our dealers are authorized to service GM vehicles under our limited warranty program, and those repairs are made only with GM parts. Our dealers generally provide their customers with access to credit or lease financing, vehicle insurance and extended service contracts provided by GM Financial and other financial institutions. The quality of GM dealerships and our relationship with our dealers and distributors are critical to our success given that dealers maintain the primary sales and service interface with the end consumer of our products. In addition to the terms of our contracts with our dealers, we are regulated by various country and state franchise laws and regulations that may supersede those contractual terms and impose specific regulatory requirements and standards for initiating dealer network changes, pursuing terminations for cause and other contractual matters
Research, Product And Business Development Of General Motors
Costs for research, manufacturing engineering, product engineering and design and development activities primarily relate to developing new products or services or improving existing products or services, including activities related to vehicle and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions control, improved fuel economy, electrification, autonomous vehicles, the safety of drivers and passengers, and urban mobility. Research and development expenses were $6.8 billion, $7.8 billion and $7.3 billion in the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017.
Product Development
The Product Development organization is responsible for designing and integrating vehicle and propulsion components to maximize part sharing across multiple vehicle segments. Global teams in Design, Program Management, Component & Subsystem Engineering, Product Integrity, Safety, Propulsion Systems and Purchasing & Supply Chain collaborate to meet customer requirements and maximize global economies of scale. Our global vehicle architecture development is headquartered at our Global Technical Center in Warren, Michigan. Cross-segment part sharing is an essential enabler to optimize our current vehicle portfolio, as we expect that more than 75% of our global sales volume will come from five vehicle architectures by mid-decade. We will continue to leverage our current architecture portfolio to accommodate our customers around the world while achieving our financial goals.
Battery Electric Vehicles
We have committed to an all-electric future and are investing in multiple technologies offering increasing levels of vehicle electrification with a core focus on zero emission battery electric vehicles as part of our long-term strategy to reduce petroleum consumption and GHG emissions. We currently offer the Chevrolet Bolt EV, which recently improved to 259 miles of range with the 2020 model year. We have also announced our all-new battery electric architecture that will launch on an upcoming Cadillac model. The new platform will be flexible, allowing quick response to customer preferences with a relatively short design and development lead time. It will be leveraged across multiple brands and vehicle sizes, styles and drive configurations. We confirmed the GMC Hummer EV, an upcoming battery electric truck, will be built at Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly, which is being re-tooled into a fully-dedicated electric vehicle facility. In addition, we have announced plans to mass-produce battery cells for future battery electric vehicles through an equally owned joint venture with LG Chem, Ltd. To support mass market adoption of electric vehicles, we are working to ensure that our customers will have access to a robust, ubiquitous and seamless charging infrastructure. For personal vehicles, this means strategically addressing charging needs at home, the workplace and in public locations. We have announced collaborative work with several charge network operators to provide real-time data on their respective networks and charge station health to filter into our Energy Assist feature within the myChevrolet app, currently available to Chevrolet Bolt EV drivers. This collaboration will enable access to the largest collective electric vehicle charging network in the U.S. Car- and Ride-Sharing Maven is a shared vehicle marketplace that leverages a versatile software and operational platform to provide members with ondemand access to vehicles through two primary services, Maven Gig and Maven Car Sharing. Maven Gig allows members to access vehicles that can be used in ride-sharing and delivery with companies such as Uber Technologies Inc. and GrubHub Inc. Maven Car Sharing is a consumer service that provides ondemand access to Maven-owned and peer-owned vehicles. Maven is available in 15 cities in the U.S., Canada and Australia at December 31, 2019.
Autonomous Technology
We expect autonomous technology to lead to a future of zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion. We are among the leaders in the industry with significant global real-world experience in delivering connectivity and advanced safety features that are the building blocks to more advanced automation features that are driving our leadership position in the development of autonomous technology. An example of our advanced technology is Super Cruise, a driver assistance feature that enables hands-free driving on the highway, which will be expanded to all Cadillac models. We are actively testing autonomous vehicles in the U.S. Gated by safety and regulation, we continue to make significant progress toward commercialization of a network of on-demand autonomous vehicles in the U.S. The Cruise AV is our production-intent self-driving vehicle that was engineered from the start to operate safely on its own, with no driver.
Alternative Fuel Vehicles
We believe alternative fuels offer significant potential to reduce petroleum consumption and resulting GHG emissions in the transportation sector. By leveraging experience and capability developed around these technologies in our global operations, we continue to develop FlexFuel vehicles that can run on ethanol-gasoline blend fuels as well as technologies that support compressed natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas. We offer several 2020 model year FlexFuel vehicles in the U.S. and Canada to retail and fleet customers capable of operating on gasoline, E85 ethanol or any combination of the two. We also support the development of biodiesel blend fuels, which are alternative diesel fuels produced from renewable sources.
Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology
Another part of our long-term strategy to reduce petroleum consumption and GHG emissions is our commitment to the development of our hydrogen fuel cell technology. Our Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell electric vehicle demonstration programs, such as Project Driveway, have accumulated more than three million miles of real-world driving. These programs are helping us identify consumer and infrastructure needs to understand the business case for potential production of vehicles with this technology. We are exploring non-traditional automotive uses for fuel cells in several areas, including demonstrations with the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy. In addition, we signed a co-development agreement and established a nonconsolidated joint venture with Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda) for a next-generation fuel cell system and hydrogen storage technologies, aiming for commercialization in the early 2020s.
OnStar and Vehicle Connectivity
We offer OnStar and connected services to more than 22 million connected vehicles globally through subscription-based and complimentary services. OnStar provides safety and security services for retail and fleet customers, including automatic crash response, emergency services, roadside assistance, crisis assist, stolen vehicle assistance and turn-by-turn navigation. We also offer a variety of connected services, including mobile applications for owners to remotely control their vehicles and electric vehicle owners to locate charging stations, on-demand vehicle diagnostics, GM Smart Driver, GM Marketplace in-vehicle commerce, connected navigation, SiriusXM with 360L and 4G LTE wireless connectivity. Additionally, we have announced plans to integrate an in-vehicle Alexa experience through Amazon.com to millions of eligible model year 2018 and newer vehicles in 2020, and integrate Google Voice Assistant, navigation and app ecosystem into GM infotainment systems beginning in 2021.
Product Development
The Product Development organization is responsible for designing and integrating vehicle and propulsion components to maximize part sharing across multiple vehicle segments. Global teams in Design, Program Management, Component & Subsystem Engineering, Product Integrity, Safety, Propulsion Systems and Purchasing & Supply Chain collaborate to meet customer requirements and maximize global economies of scale. Our global vehicle architecture development is headquartered at our Global Technical Center in Warren, Michigan. Cross-segment part sharing is an essential enabler to optimize our current vehicle portfolio, as we expect that more than 75% of our global sales volume will come from five vehicle architectures by mid-decade. We will continue to leverage our current architecture portfolio to accommodate our customers around the world while achieving our financial goals.
Battery Electric Vehicles
We have committed to an all-electric future and are investing in multiple technologies offering increasing levels of vehicle electrification with a core focus on zero emission battery electric vehicles as part of our long-term strategy to reduce petroleum consumption and GHG emissions. We currently offer the Chevrolet Bolt EV, which recently improved to 259 miles of range with the 2020 model year. We have also announced our all-new battery electric architecture that will launch on an upcoming Cadillac model. The new platform will be flexible, allowing quick response to customer preferences with a relatively short design and development lead time. It will be leveraged across multiple brands and vehicle sizes, styles and drive configurations. We confirmed the GMC Hummer EV, an upcoming battery electric truck, will be built at Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly, which is being re-tooled into a fully-dedicated electric vehicle facility. In addition, we have announced plans to mass-produce battery cells for future battery electric vehicles through an equally owned joint venture with LG Chem, Ltd. To support mass market adoption of electric vehicles, we are working to ensure that our customers will have access to a robust, ubiquitous and seamless charging infrastructure. For personal vehicles, this means strategically addressing charging needs at home, the workplace and in public locations. We have announced collaborative work with several charge network operators to provide real-time data on their respective networks and charge station health to filter into our Energy Assist feature within the myChevrolet app, currently available to Chevrolet Bolt EV drivers. This collaboration will enable access to the largest collective electric vehicle charging network in the U.S. Car- and Ride-Sharing Maven is a shared vehicle marketplace that leverages a versatile software and operational platform to provide members with ondemand access to vehicles through two primary services, Maven Gig and Maven Car Sharing. Maven Gig allows members to access vehicles that can be used in ride-sharing and delivery with companies such as Uber Technologies Inc. and GrubHub Inc. Maven Car Sharing is a consumer service that provides ondemand access to Maven-owned and peer-owned vehicles. Maven is available in 15 cities in the U.S., Canada and Australia at December 31, 2019.
Autonomous Technology
We expect autonomous technology to lead to a future of zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion. We are among the leaders in the industry with significant global real-world experience in delivering connectivity and advanced safety features that are the building blocks to more advanced automation features that are driving our leadership position in the development of autonomous technology. An example of our advanced technology is Super Cruise, a driver assistance feature that enables hands-free driving on the highway, which will be expanded to all Cadillac models. We are actively testing autonomous vehicles in the U.S. Gated by safety and regulation, we continue to make significant progress toward commercialization of a network of on-demand autonomous vehicles in the U.S. The Cruise AV is our production-intent self-driving vehicle that was engineered from the start to operate safely on its own, with no driver.
Alternative Fuel Vehicles
We believe alternative fuels offer significant potential to reduce petroleum consumption and resulting GHG emissions in the transportation sector. By leveraging experience and capability developed around these technologies in our global operations, we continue to develop FlexFuel vehicles that can run on ethanol-gasoline blend fuels as well as technologies that support compressed natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas. We offer several 2020 model year FlexFuel vehicles in the U.S. and Canada to retail and fleet customers capable of operating on gasoline, E85 ethanol or any combination of the two. We also support the development of biodiesel blend fuels, which are alternative diesel fuels produced from renewable sources.
Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology
Another part of our long-term strategy to reduce petroleum consumption and GHG emissions is our commitment to the development of our hydrogen fuel cell technology. Our Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell electric vehicle demonstration programs, such as Project Driveway, have accumulated more than three million miles of real-world driving. These programs are helping us identify consumer and infrastructure needs to understand the business case for potential production of vehicles with this technology. We are exploring non-traditional automotive uses for fuel cells in several areas, including demonstrations with the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy. In addition, we signed a co-development agreement and established a nonconsolidated joint venture with Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda) for a next-generation fuel cell system and hydrogen storage technologies, aiming for commercialization in the early 2020s.
OnStar and Vehicle Connectivity
We offer OnStar and connected services to more than 22 million connected vehicles globally through subscription-based and complimentary services. OnStar provides safety and security services for retail and fleet customers, including automatic crash response, emergency services, roadside assistance, crisis assist, stolen vehicle assistance and turn-by-turn navigation. We also offer a variety of connected services, including mobile applications for owners to remotely control their vehicles and electric vehicle owners to locate charging stations, on-demand vehicle diagnostics, GM Smart Driver, GM Marketplace in-vehicle commerce, connected navigation, SiriusXM with 360L and 4G LTE wireless connectivity. Additionally, we have announced plans to integrate an in-vehicle Alexa experience through Amazon.com to millions of eligible model year 2018 and newer vehicles in 2020, and integrate Google Voice Assistant, navigation and app ecosystem into GM infotainment systems beginning in 2021.
Intellectual Property Of General Motors
We are constantly innovating and hold a significant number of patents, copyrights, trade secrets and other intellectual property that protect those innovations in numerous countries. While no single piece of intellectual property is individually material to our business as a whole, our intellectual property is important to our operations and continued technological development. Additionally, we hold a number of trademarks and service marks that are very important to our identity and recognition in the marketplace
Raw Materials, Services And Supplies Of General Motors
We purchase a wide variety of raw materials, parts, supplies, energy, freight, transportation and other services from numerous suppliers to manufacture our products. The raw materials primarily include steel, aluminum, resins, copper, lead and platinum group metals. We have not experienced any significant shortages of raw materials and normally do not carry substantial inventories of such raw materials in excess of levels reasonably required to meet our production requirements. Costs are expected to remain elevated due to the price of commodities and the continuing existence of tariffs. In some instances, we purchase systems, components, parts and supplies from a single source and may be at an increased risk for supply disruptions. The inability or unwillingness of these sources to supply us with parts and supplies could have a material adverse effect on our production capacity. Combined purchases from our two largest suppliers were 11% of our total purchases in the year ended December 31, 2019 and 12% of our total purchases in each of the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017. Refer to Item 1A. Risk Factors for further discussion of these risks.
Employees Of General Motors
At December 31, 2019 we employed approximately 95,000 (58%) hourly employees and approximately 69,000 (42%) salaried employees. At December 31, 2019 approximately 48,000 (50%) of our U.S. employees were represented by unions, a majority of which were represented by the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agriculture Implement Workers of America (UAW).
General Motors (GM) stock price chart over the last 5 years
The image below shows the stock price history of General Motors (GM) over the last 5 years. And its been a good time for the stock of General Motors. Over the last 5 years the stock of General Motors increased by 77.5%. Pretty decent returns provided to General Motors stockholders
Related Topics