stock temp gauge reading?

In my experience, that's a perfect reading.

I have about the same results on both my 94 V6 and 95 GTS, though the V6 reads a little higher. I'd attribute that to some internal resistance on the 147,000+ mile motor, and a sign it'll need a rebuild eventually.

Depending on traffic, the temp gauge may go higher in stop-and-go traffic. It shouldn't go any higher than the "M", and the fan should bring it down to just below halfway.

Keep an eye on the guage, and remember how it reacts. I had an overheating problem some time ago, and nearly cooked my engine. The computer insisted the cooling system was working, but the car would run real hot (towards the "L"), and the fan wouldn't turn on. The mechanics swore that the guage in the dash was reading wrong, and wanted to replace my cluster. I told 'em no, and did some more checking. As the situation got worse, I noticed my gas mileage got worse and some loss of power/rpms as the engine got towards the "L". This finally got the mechanics to check the actual input from the sensors.

Turns out my temp sensor had some frayed wiring, so the computer was getting a wrong reading and the engine WAS about to overheat. The readings were bouncing all over, as if it was saying "I'm cold -- No, I'm hot -- now I'm too hot -- now I'm cold", etc. The computer kept jumping from running open loop (warmup procedure) to overheating (cut down on power). It was weird, a mouse must've been living in the engine, the wiring was chewed up.