GM Hopes to Raise $13 Billion in IPO

The initial public offering (IPO), one of the largest in U.S. history, will consist of 365 million shares of common stock, with the estimated price range for the offering of common stock at $26 to $29 per share, GM said on Nov. 3

GM will also issue 60 million preferred shares at $50 per share.

On Nov. 1 the announced a three-for-one stock split on the shares of common stock that are to be issued, according to its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. No date for the IPO was announced.

GM said it would not receive any proceeds from the sale of the common stock by the selling stockholders in the IPO.

GM chief executive Dan Akerson said in September that it could take a "couple of years" to repay the U.S. government's $50 billion investment. The IPO should allow the government, which owns nearly 61% of the company, to recoup some of its investment.

GM said in the SEC filing that the new stock will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under "GM."

The Toronto Stock Exchange has conditionally approved the listing of GM common stock under the symbol "GMM," subject to GM fulfilling all the exchange's requirements, it said.

GM separately projected third-quarter net profit between $1.9 and $2.1 billion, which would mark a third consecutive quarter in the black. Financial results were due on November 10.

Industry analyst Michelle Krebs at Edmunds.com said that GM should have waited to log more solid quarterly earnings before going public. "But there's a push by GM and from other places -- including the federal government -- to have GM go public and get the government out of its business," she said.

"My hunch is that GM's Chinese partner SAIC is going to buy a stake in the new GM. The negotiation of the partners' tech deal was curiously timed," she added.

GM earlier announced it had agreed closer ties with partner Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation, China's biggest listed automotive company, to boost cooperation, including the development of new energy vehicles. SAIC and GMs Shanghai GM joint venture sold about 843,000 vehicles in China in the first 10 months of the year.

Last year SAIC-GM-Wuling became Chinas first vehicle manufacturer to top one million units of sales and production. It has already reached this mark in 2010, GM said.