General Motors Co. today boosted its full-year forecast despite reporting lower first-quarter earnings.
GM now is estimating its full-year adjusted earnings will total $11 billion to $13 billion, up from a previous forecast of $10.5 billion to $12.5 billion.
CEO Mary Barra, in a letter to shareholders, said “the performance of the business and the opportunities ahead of us” resulted in the company raising the forecast. The company is getting the benefit of higher prices. “Orders for higher-end models are especially strong,” she said.
The Detroit-based automaker posted a first-quarter profit of $2.4 billion compared with $2.9 billion a year earlier. However, GM’s per-share profit rose to $1.69 for the quarter compared with $1.35.
GM’s adjusted earnings before interest and taxes totaled $3.8 billion compared with $4 billion in the first quarter of 2022. Quarterly revenue rose to almost $40 billion from nearly $36 billion for the same period last year.
GM’s North American operations saw its pre-tax earnings for the quarter rise by more than $400 million. But results at its GM Financial unit fell by more than $500 million.
Also, about 5,000 GM salaried workers took buyouts, resulting in a one-time expense of $875 million during the quarter. The automaker wants to cut $2 billion in costs by the end of 2024.
GM is relying on profits from trucks and SUVs in its home North America market to support its investment in electric vehicles. Besides developing EV models, GM is forming joint ventures for EV battery operations.
The automaker said separately today and that it and Samsung SDI plan to invest more than $3 billion to build a new U.S. battery cell manufacturing factory. That plant is scheduled to begin operations in 2026.
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