GM shares fall as commodity costs cloud earnings

General Motors shares fell Tuesday after the company said higher commodity costs linked to the US-Iran war were weighing on otherwise stronger quarterly results and a new $20 billion share buyback plan.

Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson said on an earnings call that higher copper, steel and diesel prices had added $400 million to 2026 costs. “We have seen a significant amount of inflation... really just in the last probably 10 weeks,” he said.

GM reported third-quarter profit of $3.3 billion, more than double the year-earlier level, and revenue rose 2.9 percent to $50.1 billion. The company said last year's profit had been hit by one-time costs tied to unwinding electric vehicle investments.

GM shares were down 5.3 percent in mid-morning trading.

The company said North American and some other auto sales were lower than a year earlier, but its average vehicle price of $52,000 was above last year's level because of sustained demand for large trucks and luxury vehicles. GM plans to launch revamped 2027 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup models.

Chief Executive Mary Barra said GM still expected 2027 to be another strong year and better than 2026, if customer demand stayed strong and commodity, logistics and other cost pressures eased.

GM also raised the midpoint of its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to between $12.75 and $13.75 a share. Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said that midpoint was below Wall Street analysts' projection. JPMorgan Chase analysts said investors were likely to question GM's conviction because of rising commodity and logistics costs, among other issues.