William Maley

Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com

June 5, 2013

The U.S. Treasury said today it plans to sell an additional 30 million shares of General Motors stock (about 12 percent) in anticipation of GM's return to the S&P 500 on Thursaday. In addition, the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust announced they would be selling 20 million shares.

During the first three months of the year, the U.S. Treasury sold off about 20 percent of its remaining GM stake. Currently, the Treasury holds 16.4 percent of GM, down from a 60.8 percent share in 2009.

The Treasury has said previously they plan to sell off all of their shares by 2014. But with this announcement this week, analysts think the Treasury is accelerating their plan.

"The sale is opportunistic given the recent S&P500 inclusion announcement, which we estimate requires a 85.4mm share buy. The accelerated sell-down by the government should be viewed positively. We believe (the Treasury exit) could be quicker — perhaps by the end of the year," said RBC Capital analyst Joseph Spak.

Source: The Detroit News

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at william.maley@cheersandgears.com or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.