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What happened
Shares of tire maker Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co (GT 1.35%) jumped 10.1% in September after the company outlined growth plans for the rest of the decade.
So what
At an investor meeting, Goodyear said that it plans to increase annual segment operating income to $3 billion by 2020 and generate cumulative free cash flow of $4.3 billion to $4.9 billion between 2017 and 2020. That's incredibly strong performance when compared to the company's $8.6 billion market cap and $5.7 billion in debt on the balance sheet.
Management also said it would spend $4 billion on a combination of capital expenditures, restructuring, debt repayment, and returns to shareholders. To that end, the dividend was increased to 10 cents per share, which will be payable to shareholders of record on November 1, 2016.
Now what
The tire business may not be terribly exciting given everything that's going on in automobiles today, but it's still very consistent. Whether people are driving cars, trucks, or electric vehicles -- or using a ride sharing platform -- they all need tires. And Goodyear is optimizing its business to take advantage of industry trends, like complex large rim tires. This may just be one month's performance, but Goodyear is well positioned to generate strong returns and cash flow in the next five years, which I think will continue to drive the stock higher.
