Fiat Chrysler Automobiles workers will receive an average of about $6,000 in profit-sharing this year, according to figures released Thursday.

The company announced the profit-sharing total, which is to be distributed on March 8, along with its earnings for 2018.

For 2018, the company said it made $8.16 billion (7.3 billion euros) before interest and taxes, up 3 percent, with net profit of $4.08 billion (3.6 billion euros), up 3 percent, and revenues of $130 billion (115 billion euros), up 4 percent.

For the final quarter of 2018, FCA said it had earnings before interest and taxes of $2.27 billion (2 billion euros), up 7 percent, net profit of $1.47 billion (1.3 billion euros), and revenues of $34 billion (30 billion euros).

The company said "record results despite trade and regulatory disruptions, as well as launch challenges (for the new Ram 1500 at Sterling Heights Assembly)" in North America affected its earnings before interest and taxes, but it also showed results in North America far outperforming other regions, with pretax earnings of $7 billion (6.2 billion euros) and revenues of $82 billion (72.4 billion euros).

FCA said it shipped 2.6 million vehicles in North America, an increase of 10 percent, "mainly due to (the) all-new Ram 1500 and Jeep Wrangler, as well as new Jeep Cherokee and Compass."

CEO Mike Manley said 2018 was an extraordinary year for FCA.

"In many ways, I believe it represents an inflection point for our company," Manley said. "We delivered another record-breaking year of earnings, generated significant industrial free cash flow, enabling us to end the year for the first time cash positive."

The company ended 2018 with $2.16 billion (1.9 billion euros) in net industrial cash. The company ended 2017 with $2.7 billion (2.4 billion euros) in debt. Company officials have worked aggressively to reverse FCA's debt picture, even touting the expected payoff at June's Capital Markets Day in Italy by distributing tins of candy with wording that read, "Net cash, How sweet it is."

2019 outlook

Looking ahead, the company expects its operating performance to be up globally in 2019, although sales in North America are likely to drop because of a lower new vehicle market overall. Although FCA cited adjusted diluted earnings per share of $3.63 (3.20 euros) for 2018, which represented a 33-percent increase over 2017, the company is forecasting that figure will drop to less than $3.06 (2.70 euros) for 2019 because of a higher tax rate in the United States.

As announced previously, the company expects to begin issuing dividends, with specific details coming this spring, followed by a special dividend for shareholders after the planned sale of components maker Magneti Marelli. Manley called it a "significant milestone."

The forecast might have been less than expected for traders, with FCA's stock taking a hit Thursday. The stock closed at $15.23, down $2.12 or 12.22 percent.

Internationally, the company noted that its results in Asia were lower "principally due to poor performance in China, where Maserati was also significantly affected." Its pretax earnings in Asia fell $335.5 million (296 million euros).

Despite the challenges in China, FCA's performance in North America has been solid, as shown by the profit-sharing announcement.

UAW-FCA Vice President Cindy Estrada said the amount announced is a result of hard work, dedication and collective bargaining. The union will begin negotiations with FCA, Ford and General Motors later this year.

"UAW members take great pride in building quality products that our customers want to buy. We look forward to working with FCA for continued success in building great union-made vehicles here in the United States long into the future," according to a statement from Estrada.

The profit-sharing checks for FCA's 44,000 UAW-represented workers are up from last year's $5,500 checks, but non-management workers also got $2,000 bonuses tied to U.S. tax law changes in 2018.

UAW-represented workers at FCA's crosstown Detroit rivals will also be receiving profit-sharing checks — $10,750 for General Motors workers and $7,600 for Ford workers.

"With this payment, U.S. hourly employees have received on average more than $29,000 in profit sharing since 2009," FCA said in a news release. "In total, FCA has invested more than $10 billion and created nearly 30,000 new jobs in the U.S. since 2009."

Emissions scandal costs

Last quarter, the company cited its U.S. diesel emissions scandal as a drag on earnings. Its estimates were clarified last month as the Italian-American automaker said it expects to spend more than $790 million to resolve cheating allegations involving approximately 100,000 2014-16 Eco-diesel Ram 1500 pickups and Jeep Grand Cherokees.

As part of a settlement in that case, some affected Ram and Jeep owners could get payments of more than $3,000. A criminal investigation is ongoing, although the company has denied intentional wrongdoing.

With the diesel emissions costs included, the company had said it made a net profit of $642 million (564 million euros) for the third quarter of 2018.

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Analysts have been mostly bullish on FCA's recent performance.

“It is so refreshing to review FCA’s performance as they have managed to do so well in this increasingly challenging environment," said Jon Gabrielsen, a market analyst and auto adviser. "FCA generated 92 percent of its pretax profits in North America (excluding Magneti Marelli) even though North America is only 66 percent of its revenues. The other third of revenues ranged from small profits in Europe and South America to its first loss in (Asia) since FCA went public."

Gabrielsen said FCA's earnings have been driven by its "very impressive market share gains" in the United States since the Great Recession.

"U.S. market share, driven by the Jeep and Ram brands, has surged from 8.6 percent in 2009 to 12.3 percent in 2018. All while both the other two in the Detroit Three have been losing market share. More share, more volume, more profits, simple as that,” Gabrielsen said.

Jeremy Acevedo, Edmunds manager of industry analysis, said FCA has a product mix built for the current new vehicle market.

“In many ways, FCA is a model of success for domestic automakers — its truck and SUV-heavy product lineup not only delivers high profits, but aligns with exactly what consumers want right now. FCA has also done a great job of staggering its product rollouts to keep things fresh for shoppers," Acevedo said in a statement.

Acevedo, however, also noted "chinks in FCA's armor heading into 2019."

He cited fleet sales and incentive spending as ways the company has kept sales high.

"There are limits on how far you can push incentives, and 2019 might be the year the company is forced to pull back a bit to ensure they protect their overall bottom line," Acevedo said.

Edmunds showed incentive spending up 12 percent for 2018 compared with the prior year to $4,772. That's higher than GM but lower than Ford.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence. Staff writer Jamie LaReau contributed to this report.