AURORA, ONTARIO – Magna International Inc. reported a net loss in the fourth quarter after a settlement with a customer and other pressures weighed, but it said overall the quarter was strong and it expects to see rising profits in 2026.
The automotive manufacturer says lower engineering sales, an unfavourable product mix and higher input costs also contributed to the US$1 million loss for the quarter ending Dec. 31, compared with a profit of US$203 million in the same quarter in 2024.
Magna, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says sales totalled US$10.85 billion in the quarter ending Dec. 31, compared with US$10.63 billion in the quarter last year.
Adjusted earnings showed diluted profits per share of US$2.18, up from US$1.69 each in the fourth quarter a year earlier
Chief executive Swami Kotagiri said on an analyst call that overall he was pleased with the quarter, and the year as a whole.
“Throughout 2025, we delivered meaningful margin benefits from operational excellence,” he said on the conference call.
“We secured important commercial recoveries, and across Magna, we executed our tariff mitigation plans, offsetting the vast majority of direct impacts.”
He said efforts to expand margins is something the manufacturer has been working through for the past three years, and will be key to increased profits ahead.
“We’ve been working at the cost structure, the fixed cost structure, again over years, and we’re starting to see benefits.”
Magna is also expected to benefit from new programs starting up with new economic terms, including the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator, Xiaomi YU7, and Jetour Zongheng G700.
The company is however also being affected by some programs ending or shifting.
Magna was set to be a supplier of seats for GM electric vehicles, but the automaker has shifted its focus back to gas-powered vehicles — and toward U.S.-based production, where competitors have the seating contracts.
“Magna did not lose the (battery electric vehicle) business. This was a customer change in direction,” Kotagiri said.
The company said Ford’s plan to retool the plant where it makes its Escape compact SUV will also have an effect on Magna’s seating production because of how significant the program is.
For 2026 as a whole, the firm says its outlook is for sales of between US$41.9 billion and US$43.5 billion and adjusted diluted earnings per share of between US$6.25 and US$7.25.
The company reported adjusted profits per share of US$5.73 for 2025 and sales of US$42.01 billion.
Fourth quarter profits were affected in part by a settlement with Ford, after the automaker pushed to have Magna cover the US$352 million costs of two product recalls.
Magna said that it reached an agreement in the quarter to pay US$132 million to resolve the issue.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 13, 2026.
Companies in this story: (TSX:MG)
