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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Stellantis, Ford and General Motors all reported about $48 billion in Q2 2026 revenue, but their earnings measures, currencies and cash-flow results are not directly interchangeable. The quarter gives a useful operating snapshot—not enough to determine which stock is cheaper or likely to earn a higher return. Start with each company’s own results, then compare valuation using same-date market data for the specific share listings.
What the latest quarter shows
The latest reported quarter located for all three companies is Q2 2026. The figures below are company-reported and use each issuer’s own currency and performance measure; they are not a normalized peer comparison.
| Company and release date | Q2 2026 revenue | Q2 2026 operating measure | Cash flow and relevant context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stellantis; July 30, 2026 | €43.5 billion net revenue | €0.8 billion adjusted operating income (AOI); 1.8% AOI margin | €1.0 billion Q2 industrial free cash flow; negative €0.9 billion for H1 2026. Q2-end industrial available liquidity was €44.1 billion. Stellantis Q2 2026 results |
| General Motors; July 21, 2026 | $48.0 billion | $3.9 billion EBIT-adjusted | The company raised its 2026 guidance for the second time that year. GM Q2 2026 earnings release |
| Ford; July 28, 2026 | $48.3 billion | $2.5 billion adjusted EBIT | $2.1 billion adjusted free cash flow. Ford reported a $1.3 billion net loss, including a $3.6 billion largely non-cash special item tied to the announced BlueOval SK joint venture disposition. Ford Q2 2026 earnings release |
These releases provide different company-defined measures: Stellantis reports AOI, Ford adjusted EBIT, and GM EBIT-adjusted. Do not rank those figures as if they were calculated under one shared definition, or treat an adjusted measure as GAAP net income. Check each issuer’s release and filing for definitions and reconciliations before comparing them. The releases also have different accounting contexts and do not supply a fully harmonized peer dataset.
How to compare earnings without misreading them
Look at revenue trends before drawing conclusions
Revenue gives a sense of scale, but one quarter does not establish a trend or show how much profit a company earns per vehicle. Compare each company’s current result with its own prior periods, then review full-year and year-to-date results. The 2025 annual reports are historical context, while Q2 2026 is the newer snapshot: Stellantis full-year 2025 results, GM 2025 Form 10-K, and the latest releases linked above.
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Separate adjusted performance from reported results
Ford’s Q2 net loss illustrates why the distinction matters: the reported loss included a largely non-cash special item, while adjusted EBIT was positive. That does not make the GAAP loss irrelevant; it means an investor should understand the item, its effect on the reported result and whether it is likely to recur. Apply the same discipline to all three companies’ adjustments rather than assuming that similarly named measures are equivalent.
Which automaker has stronger cash flow?
Match periods and read the company’s exact cash-flow label. Stellantis reported positive Q2 industrial free cash flow of €1.0 billion, but its H1 2026 industrial free cash flow was negative €0.9 billion. The quarter alone therefore gives a more favorable picture than the first-half total. Ford reported Q2 adjusted free cash flow of $2.1 billion. GM’s release provides automotive cash-flow guidance and adjusted automotive free cash flow; use its stated definitions when reviewing those figures rather than comparing them directly with another issuer’s differently defined measure.
For each company, inspect operating cash flow, capital spending and the calculation of free cash flow over matching periods. A positive quarter is useful evidence, but it does not by itself show whether cash generation is durable through the year or a full vehicle cycle.
Check liquidity, debt and financing operations separately
Stellantis reported Q2-end industrial available liquidity of €44.1 billion, equal to 27% of trailing-twelve-month net revenue and within its stated target range. That is a company-defined liquidity measure, not automatically comparable with another issuer’s cash or liquidity figure.
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Compare business mix and execution before extrapolating margins
Geography, vehicle mix, brands and financing operations can all affect results. Stellantis attributed Q2 revenue growth primarily to North America, where revenue was up 32% year over year; South America was up 6%, Enlarged Europe was flat, and other regions were slightly down. Those regional differences are a reminder that one company’s quarter may reflect a different mix of markets and conditions from another’s. Use current segment disclosures and filings to assess the fuller picture rather than projecting a single quarter’s margin across the business.
Automakers are cyclical and capital-intensive. Vehicle volumes, pricing, incentives, production, input costs and regional conditions can change the earnings picture. Strategy announcements and product plans are management expectations, not proof that execution or returns will follow.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Read guidance as a forecast, not a result
The companies’ Q2 releases also describe their expectations for 2026. Guidance is forward-looking and can change; it is not a realized result.
- Stellantis: reaffirmed full-year 2026 guidance for a mid-single-digit revenue increase, a low-single-digit AOI margin and improved industrial free cash flow year over year. Management also called for positive industrial free cash flow in 2027. These are company expectations, not reported outcomes.
- GM: raised 2026 guidance for a second time that year. Its release stated expected net income attributable to shareholders of $8.4–9.8 billion and revised EBIT-adjusted guidance of $14–16 billion.
- Ford: raised full-year adjusted EBIT guidance to $10–11 billion and adjusted free cash flow guidance to $6–7 billion.
Compare each forecast with that company’s own prior guidance and subsequent results. Do not assume that guidance labels or ranges are directly comparable across issuers.
What you need before comparing the stocks’ valuations
Operating results cannot answer “Which stock is cheaper?” Current share prices and comparable valuation multiples were not established in the cited Q2 releases. Before drawing a valuation or expected-return conclusion, assemble a same-date market snapshot for the specific shares being compared. Include:
- The exchange listing and share class, along with prices in their quoted currencies and any exchange-rate method used.
- Whether valuation uses trailing or forward earnings or free cash flow, and the source and date of any estimates.
- Share count and dilution, plus how cash and debt—or industrial net cash—are treated.
- Declared dividends and buybacks actually completed, distinguished from authorizations or historical payouts.
Stellantis common shares trade on the New York, Milan and Paris exchanges. Specify which listing you mean and do not mix dollar- and euro-denominated prices or returns without explaining the conversion. The company’s investor relations page provides its listing and financial-report links. A historical dividend is not a promised future payment, and an authorization to repurchase shares is not evidence that the repurchases have been completed.
Quick Recap
A practical comparison sequence
- Choose the share listings and a common market-data date. Record the exchange, currency and share class; convert currencies consistently if needed.
- Compare each company with its own history. Start with the latest quarter, then check year-to-date and full-year context so a single period is not mistaken for a trend.
- Read earnings measures on their own terms. Identify GAAP results, company-defined adjustments and material special items before comparing profitability.
- Align cash-flow periods and definitions. Review cash generation and capital spending over matching periods; keep financing operations distinct where the company reports them separately.
- Assess balance-sheet resilience and capital allocation. Check liquidity, maturities, completed repurchases, declared dividends and investment priorities.
- Only then compare valuation and potential return. State the earnings or cash-flow basis, debt and cash treatment, share-count assumptions and dividend assumptions behind any multiple or conclusion.
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