Plant Finance Controller Analyst 1

Lear Corporation reported third quarter 2026 revenue of $5.8 billion, up 2% from $5.7 billion a year earlier. The automotive seating and electronics supplier grew despite a 2% drop in global vehicle production. Net income rose 26% to $137 million, and core operating earnings rose 6% to $256 million. Earnings per share climbed 36% to $2.74, helped by share buybacks. Lear repurchased $175 million of shares in the quarter, meeting its full-year target of $350 million. It also expanded its repurchase authorisation to $1.5 billion, extended through December 31, 2029. Free cash flow fell to $158 million from $307 million. The company maintained its full-year core operating earnings outlook.

Lear Q3 adjusted EPS rises 33% to $3.71 on 2% revenue growth. Published October 30, 2026 Elena Kovacs Global Equities & Earnings, AI Research Agent Lear Corporation reported third quarter 2026 results on October 30, 2026, posting sales of $5.8 billion, up 2% from $5.7 billion a year earlier, with net income, core operating earnings and earnings per share all increasing year-over-year. The Southfield, Michigan-based company, an automotive technology supplier in Seating and E-Systems, reported net sales of $5,773.0 million for the quarter ended October 3, 2026, versus $5,679.8 million for the quarter ended September 27, 2025. Sales excluding the impact of commodities, foreign exchange and tariff recoveries also rose 2%, which the company said reflected the addition of new business and commercial recoveries, partially offset by lower production on key Lear platforms and the wind-down of non-core electronics programs. Net income attributable to Lear was $136.6 million versus $108.2 million in the prior-year quarter, a 26% increase according to the company. Adjusted net income was $185.0 million versus $149.8 million, up 23%. Diluted earnings per share were $2.74 versus $2.02, and adjusted earnings per share were $3.71 versus $2.79. Lear said earnings per share increased 36% and adjusted earnings per share increased 33% year-over-year, reflecting higher earnings and the benefit of its share repurchase program. Core operating earnings, which Lear defines as pretax income before equity income, interest, other expense, restructuring costs and other special items, were $255.7 million, or 4.4% of sales, versus $241.1 million, or 4.2% of sales, in 2025, a 6% increase. The company said earnings were helped by commercial recoveries, restructuring and IDEA by Lear savings, partially offset by lower production on key Lear platforms and increases in engineering and launch costs. Special items in the quarter included $47.2 million of restructuring costs and $8.0 million of costs related to power outages in Tunisia. Global vehicle production fell 2% from a year earlier in the quarter, with North America down 5%, Europe up 1% and China down 7%, based on Mobility Global estimates cited by the company. Production fell approximately 2% on a Lear sales-weighted basis. Lear reported total company growth over market of 4 percentage points, with 4 percentage points in Seating and 2 percentage points in E-Systems, and said it delivered positive operating performance of approximately 40 basis points in Seating and approximately 120 basis points in E-Systems. Segment results. Seating segment net sales were $4,326.1 million versus $4,249.6 million a year earlier. Segment earnings were $238.4 million versus $237.6 million, and adjusted segment earnings were $273.7 million versus $261.0 million. Segment margin was 5.5% versus 5.6%, while adjusted segment margin was 6.3% versus 6.1%. E-Systems net sales were $1,446.9 million versus $1,430.2 million. Segment earnings were $50.0 million versus $41.0 million, and adjusted segment earnings were $69.1 million versus $59.7 million. Segment margin rose to 3.5% from 2.9%, and adjusted segment margin rose to 4.8% from 4.2%. By region, third quarter net sales were $2,537.9 million in North America versus $2,581.0 million; $1,982.2 million in Europe and Africa versus $1,765.5 million; $977.7 million in Asia versus $1,082.8 million; and $275.2 million in South America versus $250.5 million. Content per vehicle was $682 in North America versus $661 a year earlier, and $505 in Europe and Africa versus $453; Lear noted the 2025 content-per-vehicle figures were updated to reflect actual production levels. Cash flow, buybacks and full-year outlook. Net cash provided by operating activities was $329.3 million in the quarter, and free cash flow, which Lear defines as net cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures, was $158.4 million. A year earlier, those figures were $444.4 million and $307.0 million. Capital expenditures were $170.9 million versus $137.4 million. Lear repurchased 1,375,917 shares of its common stock for $175 million during the quarter, achieving its full-year share repurchase target of $350 million, and paid $38 million in dividends. Remaining repurchase authorization at quarter-end was approximately $1.5 billion, extended through December 31, 2029, an amount the company said represents approximately 26% of its total market capitalization at current market prices. Since initiating the program in 2011, Lear has repurchased 64.9 million shares for $6.3 billion at an average price of $96.38 per share, a reduction of approximately 62% of shares outstanding since the program began. Cash and cash equivalents at October 3, 2026 were $889.4 million, with total liquidity of $2.9 billion. Total assets were $15,267.6 million, long-term debt was $2,075.4 million and the current portion of long-term debt was $641.3 million. New Seating awards in the quarter included a key replacement program and a future program with a North American automaker in North America, what the company described as its largest complete seat award in India with Mahindra & Mahindra, an award with a Chinese luxury EV automaker in China and awards with BYD in Indonesia and Thailand, a ComfortFlex award with Mercedes, and ComfortMax Seat and FlexAir awards with JLR. In E-Systems, the company reported a conquest award on a commercial and passenger van with a North American automaker in Europe and multiple conquest and new wire awards with customers in China. "Lear delivered improved year-over-year revenue and core operating earnings for the fourth consecutive quarter despite lower industry production," said Ray Scott, Lear's president and chief executive officer. "These results keep us on track to deliver our full-year earnings guidance." Scott said Lear's complete seat facility in Orion, Michigan, "is on track to launch early next year," calling it the company's most sophisticated plant and a showcase for the next phase of its technology roadmap driven by IDEA by Lear. For full-year 2026, Lear adjusted its financial outlook to reflect changing production schedules for key platforms but maintained its core operating earnings outlook, saying it anticipates operational execution and additional restructuring savings will offset the impacts of lower revenue and higher commodity and other input costs. The company's full-year 2026 outlook is summarized below: The outlook assumes full-year global industry production approximately 1% lower than in 2025 on a Lear sales-weighted basis and is based on average exchange rates of $1.15 per euro and 6.80 RMB per dollar. It excludes any future impact of potential changes to tariffs or company or industry-wide production disruptions. For the nine months ended October 3, 2026, net sales were $17,805.2 million versus $17,270.5 million, and net income attributable to Lear was $501.7 million versus $354.1 million. Diluted earnings per share for the nine-month period were $9.89 versus $6.56, and adjusted earnings per share were $11.86 versus $9.39. Lear scheduled a conference call and webcast for 9:00 a.m. EDT on October 30, 2026, to discuss the results, with a webcast replay to be available two hours following the call. Elena Kovacs is an AI-generated markets research agent at Securities.io, covering Global Equities & Earnings and the public companies, market infrastructure and investable technologies shaping that field. Elena Kovacs monitors material earnings, guidance, capital allocation, M&A, restructurings, capacity expansions and competitive shifts for public companies not owned by a narrower specialist beat. Coverage follows a fundamental, catalyst-driven, concise perspective, prioritizing first-party announcements, company fundamentals, competitive positioning and developments with material relevance for investors. Articles authored by Elena Kovacs are AI-generated and reviewed by Securities.io's editorial team to ensure factual accuracy, source quality and responsible coverage. Content is provided for educational purposes and does not constitute investment advice.