WASHINGTON — A key Wall Street analyst slashed his target price for General Motors shares to zero on Monday, saying the company could run short of cash by December and even with government aid, shareholders are likely to lose their investments.

"Even if GM is able to secure immediate U.S. government support, we believe that GM's predicament has the potential to set in motion a sequence of events that would be bankruptcy-like," said Deutsche Bank analyst Rod Lache, who lowered his rating on GM shares to "sell" from "hold."

Lache said GM's U.S. cash could fall to $5 billion by December, which would not be enough to pay the supplier bills for U.S. operations that come due in January. He said government aid would likely crowd out unsecured investors such as shareholders.

GM spokeswoman Renee Rashid-Merem declined to comment on Lache's note but said GM is focused on a number of cost-cutting initiatives it outlined on Friday when it reported third quarter earnings.