MIDLAND -- General Motors stock may be coming to a broker near you.  “It’s a good step in the right direction,” said automotive consultant and Northwood University Professor Dr. Timothy Nash, of GM’s interest in an initial public offering (IPO).

The possible stock options will come from a 20 percent stake owned by the US Treasury.  Company executives are in talks with high level bankers at JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo to go public as early as November. 

Nash said the news comes on top of a positive start for GM this year.  “The good data is that they had a strong first quarter, revenues were up 40 percent, they did almost $32 billon in sales, and they had just under $1 billion profit.”

Nash said bankruptcy was also good for GM.  The company had between $125-$150 billion in debt before bankruptcy, and reemerged with just $50 billion in debt. 

However, he said investors will have to carefully watch GM’s performance through the rest of the year to determine if the stock will be valuable long term.  He said the government’s involvement in GM makes many would-be investors nervous. 

“Right now people are still worried that it is still “Government Motors.”  In a capitalist system like what we have in the United States, people are leery about buying into a company that is roughly only 20 percent owned by private bondholders,” he said. 

The US government owns 60.8 percent of GM, with about 12 percent belonging to the Canadian government.  The UAW also owns about 10 percent of the company.