Investing.com -- Autoliv Inc. (NYSE: ALV) reported first-quarter results on Friday, exceeding analyst expectations.

Adjusted earnings per share came in at $2.05, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84, while revenue of $2.75 billion surpassed expectations of $2.61 billion. Net sales increased 6.8% YoY, driven by 0.8% organic sales growth that significantly outperformed the global light vehicle production decline of 3.4%.

The company's strong performance in Asia was a key driver, with organic sales in India growing 38% and outperforming light vehicle production by 28 percentage points, reflecting increased safety content per vehicle.

In China, Autoliv outperformed light vehicle production by 15 percentage points, particularly with Chinese original equipment manufacturers where the company outperformed by 40 percentage points. Gross profit increased 10%, supported by cost reductions and positive foreign exchange effects, though adjusted operating income declined 3.9% to $245 million due to temporary lower research and development reimbursements and one-time benefits in the prior-year quarter.

Shares rose 8.9% premarket following the announcement.

"The first quarter turned out better than we had anticipated, with strong sales in March," said Mikael Bratt, President and CEO. "Our operational performance exceeded our expectations, with solid productivity improvements, partly supported by reduced call-off volatility."

For the full year 2026, Autoliv maintained its guidance of around 0% organic sales growth, approximately 3% positive foreign exchange impact on net sales, and an adjusted operating margin of around 10.5% to 11%. The midpoint of the margin guidance at 10.75% was not compared to a specific analyst consensus.

The company expects operating cash flow of around $1.2 billion and plans share repurchases of $300 million to $500 million in 2026. The leverage ratio stood at 1.3x, below the company's target limit of 1.5x.