GM results push shares to record

General Motors just reminded Wall Street that there are reasons to get excited about its stock besides the hype around its technol- ogy advances.

Americans still want their SUVs, and the largest U.S. automaker beat analysts’ profit estimates by boosting sales of those more lucrative models. While GM slashed North American production by more than a quarter, cost cuts kept margins at healthy levels. The shares climbed the most in three weeks to a record.

The results pushed up a stock that, until the last two months, had stagnated as investors feared that peak- ing car sales and Silicon Valley’s foray into auto technology meant GM’s best days had passed. Instead, Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra has changed perceptions of the automaker’s position in electric and self-driving vehi- cles. The share surge has paid off for the likes of billionaire hedge fund manager David Einhorn, who pressured man- agement to change GM’s stock structure this year.

“The progress we’ve seen in the stock price, certainly we’re pleased,” GM Chief Financial Officer Chuck Stevens said Tuesday. “It’s the strength of the core business. Secondly, we also have been out very actively talking about the assets, the capabilities and the approach we have been bringing to bear relative to autonomy and per- sonal mobility.”

GM shares climbed as much as 3.6 percent, the biggest intraday jump since Oct. 3. The Detroit automaker’s shares have surged about 33 percent this year, more than doubling the gain by the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.

The lar gest U. S . automaker has cut annual costs by more than $5 billion since the beginning of 2014, which has helped keep profits up even as production and sales are down, Stevens said. The automaker reported adjusted earnings of $1.32 a share for the quarter ended last month, beating the $1.11 average analyst estimate.

Investors have been interested in GM’s potential to develop its own ride-sharing business using self-driving cars. The company’s core business has also been resilient amid a weaker car market.

“At the moment, the force is strong with GM,” James Albertine, an analyst with Consumer Edge Research, wrote in a report to clients Tuesday. “Management is being prudent and using today’s strengths,” including trucks and sport utility vehicles, “to offset investments in restructuring and new technology.”