Manufacturing unit posts second consecutive quarterly profit despite India fire
Atlas actuator prototype production set for November
Lamp unit spinoff slated for April; chassis module order won in US
![A view of the robotics core components zone at the 2026 Hyundai Mobis R&D Tech Day event [Hyundai Mobis]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/10/30/news-p.v1.20260913.d02d094fa8ff48b1a2fc3f0830b97a5f_P1.jpg)
Hyundai Mobis said it expects to post quarterly operating profit exceeding 1 trillion won ($749 million) in the fourth quarter of this year — a record for the company. On the robotics front, the auto parts maker said it plans to begin producing prototype actuators for Boston Dynamics' Atlas humanoid robot in November and expects its role in the business to expand further going forward.
Kim Do-hyung, executive vice president for finance at Hyundai Mobis, made the forecast during a third-quarter earnings conference call held Friday. "We expect to achieve quarterly operating profit of 1 trillion won for the first time in Mobis history in the fourth quarter," Kim said, citing the normalization of the manufacturing segment on the back of solid after-sales service profitability.
"Looking back at this year, we faced truly difficult and challenging conditions — rising semiconductor prices, the India factory fire, and a sharp drop in the exchange rate in the second half," Kim said. "The fact that we are on track to surpass 1 trillion won in a single quarter and continue manufacturing normalization despite these major setbacks shows that Mobis's underlying profitability is improving."
Hyundai Mobis posted third-quarter operating profit of 914.1 billion won, up 17.2 percent from the same period last year. The module and core components segment recorded operating profit of 33.5 billion won in the third quarter, extending its run to two consecutive profitable quarters. Although the India factory fire reduced operating profit by 97.1 billion won, the company offset the impact through cost reductions, customer cost recovery and subsidy effects.
The robotics business will deliver its first tangible results in November. Hyundai Mobis plans to begin producing prototype actuators for Boston Dynamics' Atlas humanoid robot at its Uiwang pilot line that month and will use the run to validate manufacturing processes ahead of eventual mass production.
"Because these are prototypes, the volume and sales will not have an immediately meaningful impact on Mobis's earnings," Kim said. "But the robotics business is progressing with concrete outcomes and substance, exactly as planned."
Kim added that the company is building real capabilities across multiple stages — collaboration, design, supply chain development and prototype production. "Boston Dynamics is also placing increasingly greater expectations and responsibilities on Mobis when it comes to robot mass production and securing component competitiveness," Kim said.
Beyond the actuators already under order, Hyundai Mobis is co-developing a hand gripper with Boston Dynamics and is participating in a bid for a perception module. The company also plans to establish a dedicated robotics core components organization and roughly double the headcount in that area.
The timeline for the lamp business divestiture also took shape. Hyundai Mobis aims to obtain shareholder approval for a spinoff plan at an extraordinary general meeting on Nov. 24, formally separate the lamp unit on April 1, 2027, and complete the sale to France's OP Mobility in the second half of that year. "This divestiture is not aimed at raising short-term cash, but at redirecting resources currently devoted to the lamp business toward our future core businesses," the company said.
Results on external customer orders were mixed. Hyundai Mobis this month secured a chassis module order from a major US automaker, with supply to be produced in the United States over approximately seven years. The company said the order will push its annual module-inclusive order intake above the target of $11.8 billion.
Core component orders excluding modules, however, came to $1.15 billion through the third quarter — just 13 percent of the full-year target of $8.97 billion. The shortfall reflects project delays as customers shift strategies from electric vehicles toward hybrids and internal combustion engine vehicles, as well as automakers scaling back adoption of new technologies to protect profitability.
"Mobis is responding flexibly to market conditions, providing solutions tailored to each customer's situation, and we believe we are continuing to achieve meaningful growth," Kim said.
eyre@heraldcorp.com
