A Last-Mile EV Delivery Van, Flying Cadillac Car Sends GM's Stock To New Highs

General Motors Company GM hit new 52-week highs as the company took part as a keynote presenter at the virtual 2021 Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

What Happened: GM unveiled a new business called BrightDrop and announced plans to spinoff this delivery and logistics portion of the business. The solutions from BrightDrop are meant to help businesses lower costs, maximize productivity, improve safety and support sustainability.

“We are building on our significant expertise in electrification, mobility applications, telematics and fleet management, with a new one-stop shop solution for commercial customers to move goods in a better, more sustainable way,” said GM CEO Mary Barra.

A new electric pallet called EP1 and electric light commercial vehicle called EV600 are both expected later in 2021. The items use GM’s Ultium platform and feature DC fast charging capabilities.

Related Link: 8 Stocks To Watch At CES 2021

FedEx FDX unit FedEx Express is signed as the first customer for the BrightDrop business after testing the products in a pilot program. FedEx is ordering an unspecified number of the vehicles.

Flying Car? GM also unveiled a concept flying car under the Cadillac brand. The electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft shown was a single-seater device and fit with a 90kWh electric motor. The electric concept flying car can travel at speeds of up to 56 MPH according to the company’s presentation.

The flying device from GM joins projects from other companies entering the eVTOL market. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles FCAU partnered with startup Archer. eVTOL startup Ultium has an investment from GM.

Blade, an urban air mobility company, that is also launching a future eVTOL is going public in a SPAC deal with Experience Investment Corp EXPC.

Why It’s Important: Urban last-mile delivery is expected to grow by 78% by 2030. The market for parcel, food delivery and reverse logistics is seen hitting $850 billion by 2025 for the U.S. market.

The electric van from GM has an estimated 250-mile range. Ford Motor Company’s F electric Ford eTransit comes with a range of 126 miles.

GM has committed $27 billion to a shift to electric vehicles, a shift that includes a new logo and a revamped website.

In its push into electric vehicles, GM could be showing it wants a piece of all areas of focus from cars to delivery vans to even the sky. The boost in the share price Tuesday could show investors were pleased with the unveiled concepts.

Price Action: Shares of General Motors closed up 6% to $47.82, hitting new 52-week highs of $48.95 earlier in the trading session.