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Wednesday, October 21, 2026

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Companies · Wednesday, October 21, 2026

GM reports a $3.3 billion profit and a $20 billion buyback

The File desk · Oct. 21, 2026, 6:40 a.m. ET

Confirmed1 primary sources

Status

Confirmed as company figures in General Motors' SEC exhibit, released Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, at 6:30 a.m. Eastern. The company says it narrowed its 2026 forecast range. It does not describe that change as a cut. The share price is not reported.
  • Confirmed
    GM reported third-quarter revenue of $50.0 billion and net income attributable to stockholders of $3.3 billion.
  • Confirmed
    The board approved a new $20.0 billion share repurchase with no expiration date, and the company said it narrowed its adjusted-profit range.
General Motors said Tuesday morning that it earned $3.3 billion for stockholders on $50.0 billion of revenue in the third quarter, and that its board approved a new $20 billion plan to buy back stock. The company said it narrowed its 2026 profit forecast. It did not describe the change as a cut.1
The exhibit is marked for release at 6:30 a.m. Eastern on Oct. 20. Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes were $4.1 billion, which is the company's nonstandard measure. The new buyback has no expiration date and can be stopped at any time. GM said it had finished a $6.0 billion repurchase announced in January. A quarterly dividend of $0.18 a share is payable Dec. 17 to holders of record on Dec. 4.1
On the forecast, the company wrote that it is “narrowing the range.” Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes are now $14.5 billion to $15.5 billion, against an earlier range of $14.0 billion to $16.0 billion. Adjusted automotive free cash flow is now $11.5 billion to $12.5 billion, against $9.5 billion to $11.5 billion. The adjusted per-share range is now $12.75 to $13.75, against $12.00 to $14.00. This story does not print a share-price move. None was taken from the filing.1
Why it matters (Estimate). Estimate. GM is one of the largest manufacturing employers in the country. A quarter with higher profit and a larger buyback is the company's evidence that North American buyers are still spending. The stock's move that morning is not in this story.1 The forecast change is a narrower band, which is what the filing says, not a cut announced in the document.
Those ranges are the company's guidance, not a result that has already happened. The filing is GM's account.
How we know

Notes

  1. 1.General Motors, Exhibit 99.1 to a Form 8-K, “For Release: Tuesday, October 20, 2026, at 6:30 a.m. ET.” Re-opened for this edition. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1467858/000146785826000056/gmq32026pressreleaseandfin.htm “today reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $50.0 billion, net income attributable to stockholders of $3.3 billion, and EBIT-adjusted of $4.1 billion.” “The company is updating its full-year 2026 EBIT-adjusted guidance, narrowing the range.” Table: EBIT-adjusted $14.5 billion to $15.5 billion versus $14.0 billion to $16.0 billion. Adjusted automotive free cash flow $11.5 billion to $12.5 billion versus $9.5 billion to $11.5 billion. EPS-diluted-adjusted $12.75 to $13.75 versus $12.00 to $14.00. “approved a new $20.0 billion multi-year share repurchase authorization” with “no expiration date.” Completed the $6.0 billion program announced in January. Dividend $0.18, payable December 17, 2026, to holders of record December 4, 2026. 849 million shares outstanding at September 30, down from 904 million at the end of 2025. No share-price figure is in this story.

What is still unknown or disputed

  • The share price is not reported. No market-data page was used for it.
  • The filing's phrase is “narrowing the range.” This story does not call it a cut.
  • International results are in the exhibit and are not the subject of this brief.

Primary sources

Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.

  1. Source 1

    GM releases 2026 third-quarter results

    General Motors, filed with the SEC · October 20, 2026

    General Motors today reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $50.0 billion, net income attributable to stockholders of $3.3 billion, and EBIT-adjusted of $4.1 billion. The company is narrowing the range of its full-year guidance.

    https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1467858/000146785826000056/gmq32026pressreleaseandfin.htm

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