GM’s $2 Billion Accounting Error

I’m just shaking my head.

General Motors Corp. shares and bonds fell on Friday after the automaker increased its 2005 loss by $2 billion due to accounting errors, raising questions about the company’s management and renewing doubts about its long-term survival.
Late Thursday, GM said its 2005 loss was $10.6 billion, including new charges related to job losses, its finance arm, GMAC, and the bankruptcy of former subsidiary Delphi Corp.
GM also said it would delay filing its annual report and would restate results for the years 2000 through 2004 after mistakenly accounting for cash flows from a mortgage unit. It also said it had incorrectly accounted for certain supplier payments, including those from Delphi, and vehicle leases.

What other company could make this announcement and have its shares trade modestly lower?
Here’s how some GM bonds are doing:
Maturity…………Coupon……..Price………..YTM
April 2016……….7.7%………..73.50………12.373%
March 2021……..8.8%………..72.50……..13.019%
July 2021………..9.4%………..76.50……..12.962%
July 2023………..8.25%………72.25……..12.112%
June 2024……….8.1%………..69.75……..12.291%
Sep 2025………..7.4%………..68.62……..11.46%
May 2028………..6.75%………68.88……..10.36%
July 2033………..8.375%……..73.62…….11.572%
May 2048………..7.375%……..64.09…….11.56%
These bonds are unsafe at any price.

Posted by on March 17th, 2006 at 11:30 am


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