Mark Schiefelbein / AP
"Investors pick Tesla's promise over GM's steady profits," by AP's Tom Krisher and Dee-Ann Durbin, in Detroit:
- GM's stock is trading around the $33 price of its initial public offering seven years ago. During that time, Tesla shares have soared more than tenfold to $335.
- Wall Street now values Tesla at about $55 billion, compared to around $50 billion for GM.
- Despite efforts to paint themselves as technology companies, automakers can't shake their giant, capital-intensive global manufacturing operations. The huge investment needed to build vehicles yields low profit margins compared with tech companies that make software or cell phones.
- Why it matters: The big changes in the auto industry are in the early stages. Electric vehicles make up less than 1% of global auto sales, and fully self-driving cars are years away.