The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: General Motors, Navistar, Tesla, Cooper Tires, Goodyear Tire

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL –December 21, 2018 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) , Navistar International Corp.’s (NYSE:NAV) , Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) , Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE:CTB) and The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ:GT) .

Here are highlights from Thursday’s Analyst Blog:

Auto Stock Roundup: GM, NAV, TSLA & More

General Motors Company announced that around 2,700 workers of its U.S. plants, which will close, will be offered jobs at other factories of the company. Notably, in November, General Motors took the decision to shut down production at four plants in the United States and one in Canada due to the shift in consumer preference.

Waning popularity of passenger cars amid higher demand for SUVs and trucks compelled General Motors to lower manufacturing of six car models and cut its workforce. But, now the company plans to rehire some of these employees in its other plants.

Navistar International Corp.’s fourth-quarter fiscal 2018 earnings and revenues beat estimates. Further, the figures improved year over year, driven mainly by 45% rise in sales volume of Navistar’s Class 6-8 trucks and buses in the United States as well as Canada.

Recap of the Week’s Most Important Stories

1. Tesla, Inc. reduced Model S and Model X car prices in China, per Reuters. The announcement was made after China reported that it will briefly suspend additional tariffs that it imposed on U.S.-manufactured cars and light trucks. The price of the company’s Model S was reduced by 105,000 yuan ($15,200) and Model X’s by up to 65,000 yuan.

Beginning Jan 1, 2019, China will slash the additional rate of 25%, which will reduce tariffs to 15%. The reduced rate will put the U.S. exports at par with other countries within the World Trade Organization. The additional tariff suspension was followed by a trade truce between China and the United States. It will be effective on Mar 31.

In November, the company announced a similar price cut of its Model X and Model S cars in China to make the cars more affordable for its customers in China. During that time, it slashed the prices of these two models by 12-25%.

Steep tariff rates from July strained this U.S.-based electric automaker’s financials in 2018. During the announcement of third-quarter 2018 results, the company reported that high import duties on Model S and X vehicles reduced its growth in China. In fact, CFRA’s analyst, Garrett Nelson, reported to CNBC that Tesla’s deliveries to China accounted for 6% in the third quarter’s total revenues compared with 17.2% in 2017.

Huge prospects for electric vehicles make China a worthwhile market for Tesla that offers alternate-energy cars. However, Tesla’s dependence on imports at times of high import taxes hampered growth. In a bid to increase affordability and reduce shipping costs, the company will start manufacturing vehicles in China by 2019. (Read more: Zacks Investment Research

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Written By: Zacks Investment Research