DETROIT — General Motors beat Wall Street’s top- and bottom-line expectations for the fourth quarter, while forecasting another strong year despite potential economic and sales head winds.

The Detroit automaker’s 2024 guidance calls for net income attributable to stockholders of $9.8 billion to $11.2 billion, or $8.50 to $9.50 earnings per share; adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $12 billion to $14 billion, or $8.50 to $9.50 adjusted EPS; and adjusted automotive free cash flow between $8 billion and $10 billion.

The earnings guidance is largely better than GM’s 2023 results and in line or higher than many Wall Street analysts’ expectations of flat results compared with 2023.

Here’s how the company performed in the fourth quarter, compared with average estimates compiled by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:

Adjusted earnings per share: $1.24 versus $1.16, estimatedRevenue: $42.98 billion versus $38.67 billion, estimated

For the fourth quarter, GM reported net income for stockholders of $2.1 billion, or $1.59 per share, compared with $2 billion, or $1.39 per share a year earlier. Adjusting for one-time items, GM earned $1.24 per share, topping Wall Street expectations.

Revenue was largely flat year over year, at $42.98 billion compared with $43.11 billion for the final three months of 2022.

GM’s full-year 2023 revenue was about up 10% compared with the prior year, at $171.84 billion, with net income attributable to stockholders of $10.13 billion and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of $12.36 billion. That compares with 2022 revenue of $156.74 billion, net income attributable to stockholders of $9.93 billion and adjusted EBIT of $14.47 billion.

“As we begin 2024, I believe GM is well positioned for another year of strong financial performance,” GM CFO Paul Jacobson told media during a call to discuss the results.

GM’s 2023 earnings included several special charges, including $1.1 billion in North American strike costs and $792 million charge for new commercial agreements between GM and LG Electronics and LG Energy Solution.

Shares of GM are down less than 2% this year after rising about 7% last year, lifted by an accelerated $10 billion share repurchase program that was announced in late November.

GM’s North American adjusted earnings were off 45% during the fourth quarter from a year earlier to $2.01 billion. Its international operations declined by 1.1% to $269 million.

China – GM’s second-largest market – continued to struggle, with a 34% decline in equity income for the year to $446 million, including a 54% drop during the fourth quarter.

Jacobson said GM expects its China operations this year to be roughly flat from last, including an anticipated loss in the first quarter.

“The team is doing a good job of managing through a challenging situation but we’re going to have a tough first quarter,” he said.

For the year, GM’s North American operations were off 5.3% to $12.31 billion, while international operations were up 5.9% to $1.21 billion.

GM expects to spend roughly $1 billion less this year on its majority-owned autonomous vehicle subsidiary Cruise. In 2023 it spent $2.7 billion on the embattled business unit, excluding special items such as severance packages for layoffs.

Cruise remains under several state and federal investigations following an Oct. 2 accident involving a pedestrian in San Francisco.

GM CEO Mary Barra, who chairs Cruise’s board, said officials have “already begun to implement significant changes” at Cruise following the findings of internal, third-party probes into the incident and operations.

Cruise and GM last week released findings of internal investigations that outlined cultural issues, regulatory ineptitude and poor leadership at the company, but found that officials did not intentionally deceive or mislead regulators.

The companies also disclosed Cruise remains under investigation by several entities, including the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“At Cruise, we are committed to earning back the trust of regulators and the public through our commitments and our actions,” Barra said in a letter to shareholders Tuesday.

Both Barra and Jacobson acknowledged that the adoption of electric vehicles in the U.S. has been slower than originally expected but said the company remains committed to expanding its EV lineup and sales in 2024.

“Consensus is growing that the U.S. economy, the job market and auto sales will continue to be resilient, and at GM, we expect healthy industry sales of about 16 million units with the mix of EVs continuing to grow,” Barra said.

The automaker last year pulled its near-term sales guidance for EVs but maintained plans to add 1 million units worth of EV production capacity in North America and achieve a mid-single-digit EBIT EV margin, both by 2025.

GM’s EV sales totaled 75,883 units, or 2.9% of the company’s overall sales, last year. A vast majority of those were sales of its now discontinued Chevrolet Bolt models.

The company has experienced problems in ramping up production of its newer “Ultium” EVs, including a major issue with battery module assembly.

GM has said it plans to keep its North American plants “flexible” to produce EVs and traditional vehicles with internal combustion engines, based on consumer demand.

This is breaking news. Please check back for additional updates.

— CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.

Palo Alto Networks shares moved 7% higher in extended trading on Tuesday after the security hardware and software maker issued fiscal second-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street projections.

Here’s how the company did:

Earnings: $1.05 per share, adjusted, vs. 78 cents per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Revenue: $1.66 billion, vs. 1.65 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.

The company’s revenue rose 26% year over year in the quarter, which ended Jan. 31, according to a statement. Net income came in at $84.2 million, or 25 cents per share, compared with a loss of $93.5 million in the year-ago quarter.

“Our focus on driving profitable growth is reflected in our Q2 results,” said Dipak Golechha, the company’s finance chief, was quoted as saying in the statement. “As a result, we are raising our cash flow margin and operating profitability targets as we remain focused on driving efficiency in our business.” The company has slowed down headcount growth, Golechha said on a conference call with analysts.

Palo Alto Networks has now posted three consecutive quarters of profitability following a decade of being in the red. It’s now three years ahead of profitability goals it laid out in 2021, CEO Nikesh Arora said on the call.

“We believe we now meet the criteria for inclusion in the S&P 500,” Golechha said.

The company called for fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings of 90 cents to 94 cents per share on $1.695 billion to $1.725 billion in revenue. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had expected 78 cents in adjusted earnings per share on $1.74 billion in revenue.

Management pushed up its earnings guidance for the 2023 fiscal year. It called for $3.97 to $4.03 in adjusted per share. In November guidance was $3.37 to $3.44 in adjusted earnings per share. Analysts polled by Refinitiv had been looking for $3.42 in adjusted earnings per share. The company maintained its revenue guidance. Golechha said he expects income in the fiscal third and fourth quarters.

Customers have delayed or canceled projects, but most remain on track, Arora said. The company shifted some forecasted revenue to the fiscal fourth quarter from the fiscal third quarter, he said.

He said executives continue to see evidence of the cybersecurity market being resilient, while other sectors of the economy sag as central bankers increase interest rates.

During the quarter the company acquired startup Cider Security, which focused on software supply chain and application security for about $195 million. It’s the latest deal in a series that have helped Palo Alto Networks keep growing its top line in the nearly five years under Arora.

Notwithstanding the after-hours move, so far Palo Alto Networks shares are up 20% so far this year, outperforming the S&P 500 index, which has risen 4% over the same period.

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Cisco shares rose as much as 8% in extended trading on Wednesday after the maker of computer networking ear announced fiscal second-quarter results that topped Wall Street expectations.

Here’s how the company did:

Earnings: 88 cents per share, adjusted, vs. 86 cents per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Revenue: $13.59 billion, vs. $13.43 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.

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Cisco’s total revenue grew 7% year over year in the quarter, which ended Jan. 28, according to a statement. Net income decreased about 7% to $2.77 billion.

Some components that go in Cisco’s hardware products remain constraints, but the company did see an improvement across the board, CEO Chuck Robbins said on a conference call with analysts.

“Based on the sequentials that we saw, demand remains stable,” he said, although he also said some sales cycles are longer than usual.

Cisco’s public-sector business performed more strongly than it has historically, while in the service provider category, some customers are adjusting to the better delivery of the company’s products into their environments, Robbins said.

The company called for fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings of 96 cents to 98 cents per share and 11% to 13% revenue growth. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had been looking for adjusted earnings per share of 89 cents and revenue of $13.58 billion, which implies almost 6% growth.

Cisco lifted its guidance for the 2023 fiscal year, and now expects $3.73 to $3.78 in adjusted earnings per share and 9% to 10.5% revenue growth. Both numbers are well ahead of analysts’ estimates.

But Cisco said its backlog increased year over year. The backlog for both hardware and software is still considerably higher than usual for Cisco because of limited supply availability, said Scott Herren, Cisco’s finance chief.

“We continue to have very low order cancelation rates, which remain below pre-pandemic levels,” Herren said.

Logistics costs have come down somewhat, he said.

In the fiscal second quarter Cisco’s largest business segment, Secure, Agile Networks, featuring networking switches for data centers, posted $6.75 billion in revenue. That was up 14% and more than the $6.52 billion consensus among analysts polled by StreetAccount.

The Internet for the Future unit, which includes routed optical networking hardware, contributed $1.31 billion, down 1% and just below the $1.32 billion StreetAccount consensus.

Revenue from Cisco’s Collaboration division containing Webex fell by 10% to $958 million, falling short of StreetAccount’s $1.06 billion consensus.

In the quarter, Cisco announced updates to its AppDynamics cloud software for application monitoring and disclosed a restructuring plan that includes changes to its real estate portfolio.

Notwithstanding the after-hours move, Cisco shares have inched about 2% higher, while the S&P 500 index is up 8% in the same time period.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

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Intel shares slid by as much as 7% in extended trading on Thursday after the chipmaker issued fourth-quarter results that failed to meet analysts’ estimates and gave a weaker-than-expected forecast.

Here’s how the company did:

Earnings: 10 cents per share, adjusted, vs. 20 cents per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Revenue: $14.04 billion, vs. $14.45 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.

Intel’s revenue declined 32% year over year in the quarter that ended Dec. 31, according to a statement. It’s the fourth consecutive quarter of falling sales as the market for personal computers retreats from the Covid boom.

The company recorded a $664 net loss, compared with a profit of $4.62 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Investors can expect more pain in the first quarter. Intel called for adjusted net loss of 15 cents per share on $10.5 billion to $11.5 billion in revenue. Analysts polled by Refinitiv had expected earnings of 24 cents per share and $13.93 billion in revenue.

“In 2023, we will continue to navigate the short-term challenges while striving to meet our long-term commitments, including delivering leadership products anchored on open and secure platforms, powered by at-scale manufacturing and supercharged by our incredible team,” Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said in the statement. For at least the first half of the year, Intel will deal with “persistent economic headwinds,” the company said in a presentation on its results.

In the fourth quarter, Intel’s Client Computing Group, which includes PC chips, contributed $6.63 billion in revenue, down 36% and below the $7.68 billion consensus among analysts polled by StreetAccount. Gartner said the PC market shrank more sharply than any quarter since it began following the industry in the 1990s.

The Datacenter and AI segment, consisting of server chips, memory and field-programmable gate arrays, recorded $4.30 billion in revenue, down 33% but still more than the $4.17 billion consensus from StreetAccount.

Intel’s Network and Edge segment, containing networking products, posted $2.06 billion in revenue. That’s 1% less than in the year-ago quarter, and lower than the $2.26 billion StreetAccount consensus.

During the quarter, Mobileye, an autonomous driving hardware and software supplier that Intel acquired for $15.3 billion in 2017, debuted on the Nasdaq. Intel still controls most of the voting power of Mobileye’s common stock.

Intel said that in January it lengthened the useful life of some equipment from five years to eight years, which will boost 2023 gross profit by $2.6 billion. That move is separate from the $3 billion cost-savings plan for 2023 Intel announced in its earnings statement in October. Amazon and Microsoft have made similar accounting adjustments for their server and networking equipment in recent years, and IBM on Wednesday followed suit.

Intel stock has slid about 42% in the past year, while the S&P 500 index is off by 7% over the same period.

Executives will discuss the results with analysts on a conference call starting at 5 p.m. ET.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

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Goldman Sachs on Monday posted profit and revenue that exceeded analysts’ estimates as fixed income traders generated roughly $700 million more revenue than expected.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

Earnings per share: $7.73 vs. $6.58 expectedRevenue: $11.86 billion vs. $10.86 billion expected

Second-quarter profit fell 48% to $2.79 billion, or $7.73 a share, driven by industrywide declines in investment banking revenue. Still, the per share results were more than a dollar higher than the average analyst estimate reported by Refinitiv.

Revenue fell 23% to $11.86 billion, which was a full $1 billion more than analysts had expected, driven by a 55% surge in fixed income revenue.

The bank’s fixed income operations generated $3.61 billion in revenue, topping the $2.89 billion StreetAccount estimate. Goldman attributed the performance to “significantly higher” trading activity in interest rates, commodities and currencies. Equities revenue rose 11% to $2.86 billion, edging out the $2.68 billion StreetAccount estimate.

Goldman shares were up about 4% in premarket trading.

“We delivered solid results in the second quarter as clients turned to us for our expertise and execution in these challenging markets,” CEO David Solomon said in the release.

“Despite increased volatility and uncertainty, I remain confident in our ability to navigate the environment, dynamically manage our resources and drive long-term, accretive returns for shareholders,” he said.

Goldman tends to outperform other banks during periods of high volatility, as displayed by the firm’s strong fixed income results.

Similar to rivals including JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley who posted steep declines in second-quarter advisory revenue, Goldman said investment banking revenue dropped 41% to $2.14 billion, slightly higher than the $2.07 billion estimate. The firm blamed a sharp slowdown in equity and debt issuance in the quarter, one of the casualties of surging interest rates and declines across financial assets.

The bank said its deals backlog shrank compared with the first quarter, which could indicate that potential mergers and IPOs are being killed instead of being pushed back into future quarters.

Goldman also tends to benefit from rising asset prices through its various investment vehicles, and so broad declines in financial assets stung the firm in the quarter.

Asset management revenue fell 79% from a year earlier to $1.08 billion, edging out the $924.4 million estimate. The decline came from losses in publicly traded stocks and smaller gains in private equity holdings, the bank said.

“Macroeconomic concerns and the prolonged war in Ukraine continued to contribute to the volatility in global equity prices and wider credit spreads,” the bank noted.

Last week, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo also posted write-downs tied to declines in loan books or equity holdings.

Goldman’s consumer and wealth management revenue rose 25% to $2.18 billion, essentially matching analysts’ estimates, on rising management fees, credit card balances and deposits in its digital banking business.

Goldman shares have fallen 23% this year through Friday, worse than the 16% decline of the KBW Bank Index.

Last week, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo posted second-quarter profit declines as the banks set aside more funds for expected loan losses, while Morgan Stanley disappointed after a bigger-than-expected slowdown in investment banking. Citigroup topped expectations for revenue as it benefited from rising rates and strong trading results.

Twitter just reported earnings for the first quarter of 2022, in what could be one of its last reports as a public company after its board agreed to sell to Elon Musk for $44 billion.

Here are the key numbers:

Earnings per share: 4 cents, adjusted vs 3 cents expected, according to a Refinitiv survey of analystsRevenue: $1.2 billion vs $1.23 billion expected, according to RefinitivMonetizable Daily Active Users (mDAUs): 229 million vs 226.9 million expected, according to StreetAccount

Shares of Twitter up about 1.8% Thursday afternoon.

Twitter missed analyst revenue estimates, reporting 1.2 billion versus the 1.23 billion analysts were expecting, according to Refinitiv. But it beat estimates for earnings per share, at 4 cents, adjusted compared to 3 cents expected.

The company said the 229 million mDAUs it reported in the quarter represents a 15.9% increase from the same period last year. In the U.S. mDAUs were up 6.4% from the prior year’s quarter, at 39.6 million. International mDAUs came in at 189.4 million, up 18.1% from the year before.

It also corrected previously reported mDAU numbers that overcounted some accounts from Q1 2019 through Q4 2021. Twitter said the error, which incorrectly reported roughly 1.4 million to 1.9 million extra mDAUs per quarter during that period, was made after launching a feature allowing users to easily switch between their separate accounts. As a result, the company said that during that period, all linked accounts were counted as mDAUs when an action was made by the primary account.

Before the deal was formally announced on Monday, some analysts speculated that Twitter might have wanted to finalize the deal before reporting earnings this weak, anticipating a disappointing quarter.

Snap reported last week that its revenue was impacted by macroeconomic trends weighing on advertisers, which could similarly affect Twitter.

Though it could still take months for Musk’s deal to buy Twitter to close, the company canceled its usual earnings conference call in light of Monday’s acquisition news. It expects the deal to close this year.

Twitter also said it would not provide forward-looking guidance and is withdrawing earlier goals and outlook it has provided.

Musk has signaled he’d like to use his ownership to make Twitter a more open platform, both through transparency in its algorithms and processes and in being more tolerant of different views.

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