The global headquarters of General Motors at Hudson’s Detroit in Detroit, Michigan, US, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026.
Jeff Kowalsky Bloomberg | Getty Images
DETROIT – General Motors raised its 2026 guidance after significantly beating Wall Street expectations for first-quarter earnings following an estimated $500 million benefit from the US Supreme Court’s decision to cut and restore certain taxes paid under President Donald Trump’s tax system.
GM shares rose about 5% in premarket trading. The stock closed Monday at $77.96 a share, down less than 1% on the day but up 4.1% so far this year.
Here’s how the company performed in the first quarter, compared to average ratings compiled by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: $3.70 adjusted vs. $2.62 expected
- Net worth: $43.62 billion vs. $43.68 billion expected
The tax benefit of GM’s International Emergency Economic Powers Act was highly anticipated by Wall Street analysts, but the exact amount that would be received was unknown. It’s part of $160 billion in potential refunds expected to return to companies after the funds were found illegal in February by the Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision.
The automaker has not received the IEEPA refund yet, but it expects and decided to book it during the first quarter. Trump last week told CNBC that he would “remember” thanking American companies that don’t want tax refunds.
Excluding the IEEPA tax, GM still expects total tax expense of $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion in other collections this year, down from an initial estimate of $3 billion to $4 billion.
The Detroit automaker changed its 2026 guidance to include adjusted earnings before interest and taxes between $13.5 billion and $15.5 billion, or $11.50 to $13.50 a share, up $500 million, or 50 cents per share, from earlier expectations; Net income attributable to shareholders of $9.9 billion to $11.4 billion, from $10.3 billion to $11.7 billion; and automotive operating cash flow between $16.8 billion and $20.8 billion, from between $19 billion and $23 billion.
Excluding the tax adjustment, the company’s first-quarter adjusted earnings would have still exceeded expectations and increased about 7.5% compared to a year ago. GM CEO Mary Barra said in a letter to shareholders that the quarter exceeded the company’s expectations.
“We have strong momentum in our core operations,” Barra said in the letter. “As we move forward, I am confident that this will continue to differentiate GM and support long-term value creation for our owners.”
The company has booked $1.1 billion in special charges related to backtracking on electric vehicles as it negotiates and pays suppliers. That adds up to $7.6 billion in special fees related to EVs by 2025.
Costs contribute to GM’s gross profit but not adjusted results. Automakers typically don’t include “special items” or one-time costs in their adjusted financial results to give investors a clearer picture of their core, ongoing business operations.
GM’s first-quarter revenue was in line with Wall Street expectations, but fell about 1% from a year ago.
GM’s first quarter 2025 results included revenue of $44.02 billion, net income attributable to shareholders of $2.78 billion, and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of $3.49 billion.
The company’s adjusted net income was $2.71 billion in the first quarter, down 5.19% from a year ago.
