Looking Beyond GM's Recent Sales Miss: Analysts Sees 'Nothing Negative'

General Motors Company GM reported better-than-expected earnings for its fourth quarter, despite a sales miss due to the persistent chip shortage. The company said it sees FY22 net income of $9.4 billion to $10.8 billion.

On CNBC’s "Closing Bell," Michael Ward, Benchmark senior equity analyst, said there was "nothing negative" about the latest quarter from GM.

Ward believes the balance sheet is the most important variable for GM and in the quarter the company ended the year with net cash worth $7.7 billion in its auto operations during the recent quarter.

Investors are reacting to projections, and the company issued "conservative guidance" for 2022. The guidance from GM should not be surprising due to uncertainties including chip supply. However, it can "change dramatically in the next three months" in case there is an improvement in chip supply.

Price Action: Shares of GM gained 1.4% to $54.80 in pre-market trading on Tuesday following the release of quarterly results.