REPORT: Execs including Bob Lutz, Troy Clarke dump GM stock
As General Motors teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, several major executives have just taken advantage of an opportunity to sell their stock shares just after the company's quarterly earnings report came out in May. Among them, Bob Lutz, Troy Clarke, Thomas Stephens and several others decided that it was better to cash out and get something, no matter how paltry. As the June 1 deadline for a workable restructuring plan or bankruptcy filing looms, the suits grabbed what may be their last chance to get rid of their holdings. Departing Vice Chairman Lutz took in $130,989.60 from the sale of his 81,360 shares. GM North America President Troy Clarke sold 21,380 shares for a return of $31,001 – not exactly a ringing vote of confidence in the automaker, but you'd expect so many thousands of shares would bring more money. Ouch.
CEO Fritz Henderson keeps intimating that bankruptcy is where General Motors is headed, and the stock has taken a 90+ percent beating this past year, making all financial activities look like preparation for a bankruptcy filing. Or just an example of rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Thanks for the tips, everyone.
[Source: Bloomberg]
_opt_thumbnail.jpg)
_thumbnail.jpg "2011 Audi A8: Live from Miami")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Avinash machado 9:33AM (5/12/2009)
Is this sort of like the rats who deserted the sinking ship?
Reply
mapoftazifosho 9:42AM (5/12/2009)
Ok, they held on til it was at $1.44 a share...it had been up in the $50 per share til 2-3 years ago. I think...could be wrong.
Librapaj 9:47AM (5/12/2009)
No, rats have more class.
On another note, no one typically sells stock when it's high. I can almost guarantee you that these suave business men did not anticipate GM tanking so hard and so fast in such a short period of time. With all the sales of Hummer and GMC trucks they were ringing in the dough. Then the economy tanked and gas was over 4.00 Bucks a gallon where I live and, where you can see where this is going.
John 9:49AM (5/12/2009)
To all the self righteous people who will condemn Lutz and Clarke get off your high horse.
We would all do the same in their situation. If you had first hand knowledge your company stock was going to be worthless in a few weeks you would cash out too.
Reply
audi_arena 9:54AM (5/12/2009)
No, actually I wouldn't. These tools are part of an elitist sub-culture in our country where they really do feel like superior beings who are entitled to their positions of power. If their own merit was actually a factor in holding their positions, they would have been gone years ago.
I personally think the shareholders should file a massive lawsuit.
John 10:03AM (5/12/2009)
Actually, if they had "firsthand knowledge," that's called insider training. Ask Martha Stewart how she enjoyed being in the slammer for it.
Librapaj 10:07AM (5/12/2009)
umm that is called insider trading. I value my freedom thank you very much. but you Mr. Martha Stewart, you are welcome to do anything illegal anytime you wish.
John 10:28AM (5/12/2009)
Martha Stewart is an apples and oranges argument.
Company executives exercise options every single day and have first hand knowledge of sales and profit/loss statement forecasts. I suggest you look up terms like "insider trading" before throwing them around.
The lack of knowledge on this forum never ceases to amaze me.
Santosh Tiwari 10:44AM (5/12/2009)
Troy Clarke got a meager $31,000
He makes twice that per month. Its like two-week pay check for him.
If I had worked for a company for so long and had been president of GMNA, I wouldn't be such an ******.
It just shows their true character, which disgusts me.
Judy Zik 11:19AM (5/12/2009)
It's called class. The amount of money they would have got selling out their shares is pocket change to these folks but the signal it sends to other shareholders is pretty damaging. It is important to note that the employee plan also dumped GM stock too a while ago. It is all pretty tacky. If everyone with any knowledge of what is going on inside the Ren Center wants to get their money out then maybe this is Queenstown (Titanic's last port of call where 7 people actually got off and one crew member ran off).
For thoses of you still holding GM stock I hope you are paying attention. I really don't want to hear any griping in a few weeks when they file and your stocks become worth next to nothing.
BigWill 11:24AM (5/12/2009)
Get the story straight about Martha Stewart. She didn't go to jail for insider trading, she went for making false statements to the Feds.
John 10:01AM (5/12/2009)
"I personally think the shareholders should file a massive lawsuit."
If you were foolish enough to still be holding GM stock you get what you deserve. I saw the writing on the wall several years ago and sold mine at $65/share.
Reply
Alex 10:12AM (5/12/2009)
Ditto, sold off my shares long ago. didn't make $65 a piece, but i did a hell of a lot better than $1.60.
Sollord 11:01AM (5/12/2009)
They're just dumping the stock which will be worthless June 1st when they file for Chapter 11 anyone still holding any GM shares was screwed along time ago
Librapaj 10:08AM (5/12/2009)
Damn it good John, you beat me to it.
Reply
JayC 10:10AM (5/12/2009)
Are these just sales from a vesting schedule?
Reply
Librapaj 10:11AM (5/12/2009)
And for the record, these, to quote audi-arena, "tools" are the ones that got that company into this mess to begin with. They took an iconic American company and drove it right down to the ground, and just when they thought they couldn't do anymore damage, they dug it in some more. I don't pity these guys one bit. Remember while people are struggling to put food on their tables because of these men's bad decisions, these "tools" are going home to the mansion and eating hearty meals.
Reply
Alex 10:22AM (5/12/2009)
Ohh spare me. GM has been on a downward trajectory for DECADES! The American auto industry as a whole has been losing market share since the 80s. Lutz et al certainly didn't help the situation beyond the short term (GM did do quite well in the SUV boom) but to point the finger at them and say they are the single source of the problem is ridiculous.
GM is far too large a company with far too many serious issues to be dragged down to this level by a single group. Its problems are and have been: market share, build quality, brand perception, union demands, legacy costs, self-competing brands, the list goes on.
Librapaj 10:26AM (5/12/2009)
you know what they say Alex, if it happens on your watch, it is your problem. You seem like a bright guy so I am sure you didn't take my comment as me saying it's all their fault. But when they were doing "quite well" in the SUV and truck boom days, they didn't do anything to fix their company long term. Did they think they were going to go on forever selling ridiculous amounts of hummers to soccer moms and athletes? The job of a CEO of any company, is to lead their company through good and bad times and to give their company a vision for the short and long term. Unfortunately, Bob Putz didn't do either. And for the record, the market share that GM lost during his watch was unprecedented for any corporation of that size.
Nellydesign 10:25AM (5/12/2009)
At first I thought "Insider trading!" but then I thought, "If this is insider trading it's the worst case ever." Insider trading would have applied if they had dumped it BEFORE it plummeted to basically nothing. They are just doing what everyone else is doing right now. You don't need inside knowledge to know bankruptcy is coming to the RenCen.
And yes I know they haven't made the best choices over the years, but the ones you should blame are those BEFORE Lutz who churned out year after year of sub-par vehicles. They are the ones who created a culture of mediocrity and fed the public's view of GM as a low quality brand. Can you honestly look at the cars Lutz is responsible for and say he drove them into the ground? The Malibu, CTS, etc, are good cars. People just aren't buying cars period and the companies in the worst financial shape are suffering the most.
Reply