General Motors Tops Expectations

General Motors (NASDAQ: GM) announced its results for the second quarter on August 4, 2011. Let's take a closer look at the company's industry, financials, and commentary and see what steps you can take next.

Earnings and Revenue:
General Motors managed to exceed Wall Street estimates with stronger-than-expected EPS and revenues. The company reported EPS of $1.54/share versus the $1.20/share estimate and revenues of $39.4 billion versus the $36.71 billion estimate. EPS rose 81% from the year-ago quarter while revenue climbed 19%.

Official Comment: 
"GM's investments in fuel economy, design and quality are paying off around the world as our global market share growth and financial results bear out," said Dan Akerson, chairman and CEO.  "Our progress has been steady and we're preparing to launch more new products this year, including the Chevrolet Sonic in North America, the Opel/Vauxhall Zafira in Europe and the Baojun 630 in China to keep the momentum going."

Conference Call:
The conference call for second quarter earnings can be accessed here.

Industry:
The domestic automobiles company's industry is currently enjoying price/earnings growth of 0.8%. With its recently reported EPS, the company is trailing the industry's estimate average by 66.4%.

What to Do Next:
Now that you've gotten a round up of General Motors' latest numbers, you can make a better-informed decision about whether to buy, sell or hold those shares. Whatever you do, be sure to visit us before the company's next earnings release for a full preview.

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