Seating and electrical supplier Lear has reported record results for the first quarter of 2018.
These include: record sales of US$5.7bn, up 15% year on year; net income of $353.7m and adjusted net income of $344.5m, compared to $305.8m and $300.1m, respectively; record core operating earnings of $490.5m, up 14%; earnings per share of $5.16 and record adjusted earnings per share of $5.10, up 19%.
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"In the first quarter, we again delivered record financial results and accelerated our sales growth," said president and chief executive officer Ray Scott.
"We are launching many new programmes this year with added content and opportunities for profitable product mix improvement."
Lear said the sales was due to new business and the acquisition of Grupo Antolin's seating business, though there was lower production on key Lear platforms. Sales for the seating and E-systems segments were up 12% and 24%, respectively.
Outlook
The full year 2018 financial outlook for sales and earnings was increased following the strong first quarter.
Sales are now expected to be in the range of $21.8bn to $22.0bn, up $400m.
Operating earnings are now expected to be in the range of $1,790m to $1,810m, up about $40m from the previous outlook.
The supplier is assuming global industry production of 95.7m vehicles, up 3% from 2017.
Vehicle production is forecast to be 17.2m units in North America, up 1%, 23.4m units in Europe and Africa, up 2%, and 27m units in China, up 3%.
