UPDATE: GM Shares Rise After Upbeat Q3 Earnings

Shares of General Motors Co GM surged more than 3% in pre-market trading after the company reported upbeat earnings for the third quarter. The Detroit, Michigan-based company posted quarterly net income of $1.38 billion, or $0.81 per share, compared to $698 million, or $0.45 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time costs, GM earned $0.97 per share. Its revenue gained 2% to $39.25 billion. However, analysts were expecting a profit of $0.95 per share on revenue of $39.8 billion. North America posted an operating profit of $2.45 billion during the quarter, while North American operating margin widened to 9.5% from 9.3%. GM posted an operating loss of $387 million for Europe, while South America posted a loss of $32 million. The company's international operations reported an operating profit of $259 million. The company ended the quarter with total automotive liquidity of $36.6 billion. Automotive cash and marketable securities was $26.1 billion, down from $28.4 billion in the second quarter. “Strong global sales and growing margins in North America and China helped GM deliver very solid third quarter results,” said GM CEO Mary Barra. “Despite industry challenges in Russia and South America, our earnings were on plan as we continue to execute our customer-focused strategy.” GM shares rose 3.29% to $32.34 in pre-market trading.