General Motors Shares Priced at $33 for IPO

After months of anticipation General Motors has priced its stock at $33 a share in its initial public offering slated to begin official trading Thursday in New York.

The figure is at the high end of the offer, which in recent days saw its range rise from the initial range of $26 to $29 a share. The Detroit automaker is looking to raise nearly $23 billion through the sale of a combination of both common and preferred shares.

If GM's underwriters exercise an "overallotment" option, which is expected, the resurgent automaker's IPO could be the world's largest, when measured by amount of money raised, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The sale of stock would effectively reduce the U.S. government's stake in the company to around 40% from the current 61%. The government acquired its stake as part of the bankruptcy process GM agreed to last year.

U.S. taxpayers are owed some $50 billion from the rescue of GM, which so far has returned $9.5 billion. Treasury is seeking to recoup the rest through the sales of stock during the next couple of years.

Underwriters of the offer expect shares to rise 10% to 20% in first-day trading, the Journal reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the IPO.