Here’s what Wall Street experts are saying about GM and Ford ahead of earnings

General Motors (GM) is scheduled to report quarterly results before market open on Tuesday, October 21, with a conference call scheduled for 8:30 am EST, while Ford (F) is scheduled to report after market close on Thursday, October 23, with a conference call scheduled for 5:00 pm EST. What to watch for:

GM SALES: In October, GM reported Q3 U.S. vehicle sales were up 8% from the like year-earlier quarter, on continued strength in both electric and gas-powered vehicles. GM set another EV sales record in Q3, with 66,501 deliveries. Industry-wide EV sales continued to surge as customers sought to take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credit. GM’s year to date total EV sales in the U.S. year to date now stand at 144,668, up 105% from a year earlier. “No one is in a stronger position for a changing U.S. market than GM,” said Duncan Aldred, SVP and president of North America. “We have the best lineup of ICE and EV vehicles we’ve ever had. Our brands have grown market share with consistently strong pricing, and low incentives and inventory.” The company and its joint ventures in China also continued to build strong momentum in Q3, delivering nearly 470,000 units with a 10.1% increase from a year earlier. This marks the company’s second consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth in both sales and market share in 2025.

GM GUIDANCE: Along with its Q2 earnings, the company guided to a FY25 EPS view of $8.25-$10.00. Consensus, which stood at $9.26 at the time, has since risen to $9.45. The company also forecast FY25 EBIT-adjusted view of $10B-$12.5B and capital expenditures of $10B-$11B. Additionally, GM backed a FY25 gross tariff impact view of $4B-$5B.

GM PARTNERSHIPS, INITIATIVES: GM announced in July that the company was upgrading its Ultium Cells battery manufacturing plant in Spring Hill in collaboration with joint venture partner LG Energy Solution. Additionally in July, Redwood Materials signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with GM “meant to accelerate deployment of energy storage systems using both new U.S.-manufactured batteries from GM and second-life battery packs from GM electric vehicles.” In August, Noveon Magnetics announced a multi-year supply agreement with the company to deliver rare earth magnets to support a range of vehicle components. GM also announced plans for five co-developed vehicles with Hyundai Motor (HYMTF) in August. In September, Pilot Company, GM and EVgo (EVGO) announced their collaborative fast charging network reached more than 200 locations across nearly 40 states. In October, the company also announced it was taking charges of $1.6B on strategic realignment of its EV capacity.

ANALYST VIEW: In October, BofA lowered the firm’s price target on GM to $61 from $62 and kept a Buy rating on the shares. Both Ford and GM consensus estimates have trended higher since Q2 earnings, noted the analyst, who remains more positive than consensus on GM with a Q3 EBIT forecast that is 3.5% above consensus. However, the firm noted that it revised down its 2026 estimates for GM based on lower expected North America volumes.

Meanwhile, Evercore ISI raised the firm’s price target on GM to $68 from $55 and kept an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm models both Q3 upside with the company likely narrowing guide to the upper-end of both EBIT/EPS. GM’s strengths are well known in both sales/market-share and execution, while buyside has found the second half of the year “harder to model” post Q2’s confusing pricing/walk, Evercore added.

FORD SALES: In August, Ford reported total U.S. vehicle sales of 189,313 in July, up 9.3% from the same month of last year. The company reported total electrified vehicle sales of 27,042, up 7.9% from last year, and internal combustion sales of 162,271, up 9.5% year-over-year. In September, the company reported August U.S. total vehicle sales of 190,206, up 3.9% from 182,985 in the same month of last year. Ford reported EV sales of 10,671, up 19.3% year-over-year; Hybrid Vehicle sales of 18,773, up 14.5%; and Internal Combustion sales of 160,762, up 2.0% from last year. In October, Ford reported increasing U.S. sales 8.2% year-over-year to 545,522 vehicles in Q3. “This quarter’s growth showcases our portfolio’s unmatched flexibility and breadth,” said Andrew Frick, president, Ford Blue and Model e. “We saw strong performance in gas, hybrid, and electrified powertrains, while at the same time growing our paid software solutions, all embedded in vehicles such as Expedition, Explorer and F-150.”

FORD GUIDANCE: Along with its Q2 results, Ford guided to FY25 adjusted EBIT of $6.5B-$7.56 with a $2B tariff headwind. The company expects to generate $3.5B-$4.5B of adjusted free cash flow with capital expenditures of about $9B. The company said, “In February, the company initially provided adjusted EBIT guidance for the year of $7B to $8.5B and then withdrew that guidance in May due to tariff-related uncertainty. The company’s updated guidance reflects the strong underlying first half performance across Ford Blue, Ford Model e, Ford Pro and Ford Credit, and continued improvement in cost. The net tariff-related headwind of about $2B reflects a $3B gross adverse adjusted EBIT impact, offset partially by $1B of recovery actions.”

FORD PARTNERSHIPS, INITIATIVES: In July, Ford announced Alicia Boler Davis had been named president of Ford Pro. Additionally in July, UK Export Finance, the Government of the United Kingdom’s credit agency, said it is providing a GBP 1B export development guarantee to Ford UK. In August, the company announced an investment of $5B across its Louisville assembly plant and BlueOval Battery Park Michigan to deliver a new pickup and produce advanced prismatic lithium iron phosphate batteries. In September, Ford Pro announced a multi-year collaboration with ServiceTitan (TTAN). The company also announced a move of its headquarters in September to its Dearborn product development campus.

ANALYST VIEW: In October, BofA lowered the firm’s price target on Ford to $13.50 from $14 and keep a Buy rating on the shares. Both Ford and General Motors (GM) consensus estimates have trended higher since Q2 earnings, noted the analyst, who remains more positive than consensus on Ford with a Q3 EBIT forecast that is 3.9% above consensus. However, the firm noted that it revised down its 2026 estimates for Ford to reflect slower margin improvement at Ford Pro and higher losses for longer at Ford Model e.

Meanwhile, Jefferies upgraded Ford to Hold from Underperform with a price target of $12, up from $9. The firm said that with 43% of U.S. volume in full size pick-ups and SUVs, the loosening of current constraints on mix of higher CO2 mix models should enable Ford to offset tariffs and improve earnings next year. Jefferies expects Ford to remain committed to an electrification strategy and believes the company should benefit from a longer adjustment period. However, Jefferies said the shares are “relatively expensive” at current levels.