General Motors Co. late Tuesday reported first-quarter revenue below Wall Street expectations, but the stock traded higher in the extended session after an initial drop, as investors cheered the auto maker’s intact guidance for the year and its assurances about vehicle demand.
Guidance was unchanged thanks to “strong demand” for GM vehicles as well as the company’s “cost discipline” and growth path, Chief Executive Mary Barra said in a call with analysts after GM announced the quarterly results.
GM GM, -4.47% said it earned $2.9 billion, or $1.35 a share, in the quarter, compared with $3.02 billion, or $2.03 a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for one-time items, GM earned $2.09 a share.
Revenue rose to $35.98 billion, from $32.47 billion a year ago.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected GM to report adjusted earnings of $1.65 a share on revenue of $36.9 billion.
Shares rose about 2% in after-hours trading.
Barra and other GM executives expressed confidence about GM’s pivot toward electric vehicles and autonomous driving, and said they were confident about the business despite a “challenging” macroeconomic environment.
On the call, Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson said GM was “watching very closely” inflation trends and rising raw-materials costs, and said that the company has a track record of managing those pressures.
“The world is very dynamic right now, and what you don’t want to do is overreact,” Jacobson said.
GM said it expects full-year 2022 net income between $9.6 billion and $11.2 billion, and reaffirmed earnings guidance of EBIT-adjusted between $13 billion and $15 billion.
GM tweaked higher its outlook for adjusted per-share earnings to a range between $6.50 and $7.50 for the year, from a previous expectation of between $6.25 and $7.25.
Read also: GM and Honda are setting their sights on making cheaper EVs
GM earlier this year bought Softbank Vision Fund’s stake in Cruise for $2.1 billion, amplifying its bet on the autonomous-driving unit.
Barra said GM increased its ownership stake of Cruise to about 80%, from about 60%, “because we are extremely bullish on the rapid progress towards commercialization.”
“We will have more Cruise news to share as we complete the permitting process to charge for rides in San Francisco,” Barra said.
A “significant part” of her long-term compensation as well as compensation for top executives will be tied to meeting EV goals, she said.
GM shares have lost more than 34% in the past 12 months, contrasting with gains of around 1% for the S&P 500 index SPX, -2.81% in the same timeframe.
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