General Motors shares rose Thursday after Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas lauded the auto titan's restructuring.

He's particularly impressed with the job done by Chief Executive Mary Barra. "What she and her team are doing may be one of the most profound strategic turnarounds not just in the auto industry but all of business," he told CNBC.

Jonas cited GM's exit of its European car business, its purchase of autonomous-vehicle company Cruise, its move toward eliminating internal combustion-powered cars, its tieups with Microsoft and Honda, and its formation of battery company Ultium.

"The most exciting part of this is our clients don't quite believe it yet," Jonas said. "The best is yet to come."

Investors will see the light and "rerate" the stock, he said. That will come "not from auto investors but from [environment, social and corporate-governance] and tech investors," Jonas said.

Competition from Tesla , it turns out, is a good thing for GM, he said. "General Motors can thank [Tesla Chief Executive] Elon Musk for waking them up and putting urgency in them. The GM management team isn't letting up."

GM shares recently traded at $56.01, up 0.3%. They have been wobbly on Thursday, briefly slipping into the red and also touching a 52-week high near $57. They've soared 59% over the past 12 months amid strong demand during the covid pandemic.

In other auto news Thursday, Ford Motor shares surged to the highest in more than two years after TheStreet's founder, Jim Cramer, highlighted the electric vehicle investment push from the administration of President Joe Biden. Ford recently traded at $12.01, up 11%.