ALV vs GM: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?
Last updated October 2026
Short answer
GM is the larger of the two ($73.67B market cap): the incumbent the market prices for continued execution (5.56x forward earnings, beta 1.40). ALV is the smaller challenger ($8.35B), actually pricier on forward earnings (9.98x): more room to run, but more to prove. The real question is which set of drivers you believe, and whether owning one (or both) leaves you over-concentrated.
ALV vs GM: the tie-breaker metrics
Same yardstick, side by side (as of October 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.
| Metric | ALV | GM | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $8.35B | $73.67B | Size. The larger name is the incumbent; the smaller has more room to grow and more to prove. |
| Forward P/E | 9.98 | 5.56 | Valuation on next year's expected earnings, the same yardstick for both. Lower is cheaper for that growth; higher means the market is paying up. |
| Trailing P/E | 13.70 | 37.65 | Valuation on the last 12 months. A big drop from trailing to forward means the market expects earnings to jump, so more growth is already in the price. |
| Beta | 1.40 | 1.40 | Volatility vs the market. Above 1 swings harder than the index; below 1 is steadier. Higher beta means bigger drawdowns to hold through. |
| Price vs 52-week range | 51% of range | 77% of range | Where today's price sits between the 52-week low and high. Near the high is momentum with less margin of safety; near the low is out of favor or a discount, depending on why. |
| Price / book | 3.41 | 1.19 | How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price. |
Reading it: GM is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.
Before you buy: how ALV and GM affect your concentration
The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. ALV and GM share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.
This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined ALV and GM exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
What does Autoliv (ALV) do?
Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE: ALV) is the global leader in passive automotive safety, supplying airbags, seatbelts, steering wheels, and related components to essentially every major automaker. The company holds roughly a 44 to 45 percent share of the worldwide passive-safety market, well ahead of its nearest rivals, and generated about $10.8 billion in net sales in 2025. Its content sits inside cars regardless of powertrain, so it participates in electric, hybrid, and combustion vehicles alike, and demand is underpinned by rising safety regulation and the steady increase in safety content per vehicle.
What does General Motors Company (GM) do?
General Motors Company is a Detroit-based global automaker that designs, manufactures, and sells trucks, crossovers, cars, and automobile parts under the Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, and Cadillac brands, and provides automotive financing through its GM Financial arm. The overwhelming majority of its profit comes from North America, where full-size pickup trucks (the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra) and a broad lineup of crossovers and SUVs command strong pricing and margins. GM also operates through equity joint ventures in China, holds a portfolio of electric vehicles built on its Ultium battery platform, and had been developing autonomous-driving technology through Cruise before folding that effort into a leaner in-house driver-assistance program.
ALV vs GM: how do they differ?
Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.
- ALV drivers: Market leadership and safety content growth; Margin expansion and cost discipline.
- GM drivers: Truck and SUV profit engine plus capital return; EV rightsizing to cut losses.
Which fits which kind of investor
A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Autoliv's results are tightly linked to global light-vehicle production, which is cyclical and can fall sharply in a downturn. For GM, gM is deeply cyclical: new-vehicle demand, pricing, and margins can fall sharply in a recession or when interest rates raise the cost of auto loans.
ALV or GM: which should you pick?
Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick ALV if you believe its drivers more; GM if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the ALV and GM guides.
ALV vs GM: the full fundamentals
ALV. Autoliv trades at about 14 times trailing earnings and about 10 times forward, with an EV/EBITDA near 6.6, a typical auto-supplier multiple that reflects cyclicality despite its leading market position. Trailing net income has slipped to about $643 million from $735 million in 2025, but consensus looks for EPS of about $10.23 in 2026 and $11.62 in 2027. The Q3 report on October 23, 2026 is the next read on whether margins are holding against flat vehicle production.
GM. GM's trailing P/E of about 38x is distorted because GAAP earnings over the last twelve months still include the Q4 2025 EV realignment loss, while the forward multiple against 2027 consensus EPS of about $15.11 is roughly 5.6x, among the lowest of large US companies. The shares have risen about 48 percent over the past year yet still trade near 0.4x sales and 1.2x book, so the market continues to price GM as a cyclical, tariff-exposed automaker. The October 20 Q3 report, with consensus at about $3.63 of adjusted EPS, is the next data point on whether those earnings estimates hold.
Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): ALV shows revenue (ttm) ~$11.1B, q2 2026 net sales ~$2.80B (up ~3.3% YoY), q2 2026 adjusted eps (actual vs est.) ~$2.43 vs ~$2.48, operating / net margin (ttm) ~9.6% / ~5.8%; GM shows revenue (ttm) ~$185.5 billion (+1.9% yoy in Q2 2026), net income (ttm) ~$1.9 billion (includes Q4 2025 EV charges), margins (ttm) ~10.2% gross, ~3.2% operating, ~1.0% net, eps ~$2.23 GAAP trailing; ~$13.42 2026 and ~$15.11 2027 consensus.
The bottom line: ALV vs GM
ALV and GM are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined ALV and GM exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.
Wondering how ALV or GM fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in Autoliv with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how ALV fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What is the difference between ALV and GM?
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Autoliv, Inc. General Motors Company is a Detroit-based global automaker that designs, manufactures, and sells trucks, crossovers, cars, and automobile parts under the Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, and Cadillac brands, and provides automotive financing through its GM Financial arm. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.
Is ALV or GM the better stock?
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Neither is universally better. GM is the larger incumbent; ALV is the smaller challenger and looks pricier on forward earnings. Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Compare what each does, the tie-breaker metrics above, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.
Which is cheaper, ALV or GM?
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On forward P/E (as of October 2026), ALV trades at 9.98x and GM at 5.56x, so GM is the cheaper of the two on next year's expected earnings. A lower multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is compounding.
Should you own both ALV and GM?
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Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both, and whether adding either over-concentrates you, before you buy.
What are the risks of ALV vs GM?
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ALV: Autoliv's results are tightly linked to global light-vehicle production, which is cyclical and can fall sharply in a downturn. Tariffs on imported vehicles and components, raw-material and labor inflation, and pricing pressure from automakers can all squeeze margins. The shift toward electric vehicles and toward lower-priced Chinese OEMs changes the customer mix and can pressure content pricing, while any product recall or quality issue in a safety-critical business carries outsized cost and reputational risk. Currency swings also matter because most sales are outside the US dollar. Profit has softened in 2026 even as sales grew, with trailing earnings growth of about negative 37% year over year, and debt of about $2.2 billion sits against about $377 million of cash. Analysts expect Q3 2026 EPS of about $2.23 on about $2.72 billion of sales, both slightly below the prior-year quarter. GM: GM is deeply cyclical: new-vehicle demand, pricing, and margins can fall sharply in a recession or when interest rates raise the cost of auto loans. Tariffs and trade policy are a two-sided risk that can quickly swing from a rebate benefit to a multi-billion-dollar cost, and the company faces $1.5 billion to $2 billion of expected commodity inflation in 2026. The EV transition remains expensive and uncertain, having already driven more than $7.2 billion of 2025 charges, and a faster-than-expected shift could force further write-downs while a slower one strands prior investment. GM also carries meaningful exposure to a competitive and price-pressured China market, ongoing labor-cost dynamics with the UAW, and the reputational and financial tail risk of vehicle recalls and warranty claims. Balance-sheet leverage is also part of the picture: GM carries about $129 billion of debt (much of it funding GM Financial's loan book) against roughly $25 billion of cash, so a deterioration in auto-credit performance would hit both the lending arm and the equity.
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Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell ALV or GM; figures are approximate and dated (as of October 2026). Verify current data before investing.