Autoliv Inc. ( ALV - Analyst Report ) reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter EPS today while also forecasting a surge in sales for the first quarter.

The news sent shares of this air bag and seat belt manufacturer higher by around 5% Friday, securing a spot on the Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers List. Volume is up to more than 2.6 million shares, compared to the daily average of 1.05 million.

ALV has now put together 4 straight quarters of positive EPS surprises, amassing an average beat in that time of more than 47%. Earnings estimates for 2010 have been on an upward trajectory, and may continue that trend after this solid quarter and encouraging outlook.

Autoliv is the worldwide leader in automotive safety systems. It develops and manufactures automotive safety systems for all major automotive manufacturers in the world.

ALV is 1 of 3 companies from the auto/truck-orig industry on today's Zacks #1 Rank List. The other 2 names are Johnson Controls, Inc. ( JCI - Analyst Report ) and TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. ( TRW - Analyst Report ) .

Strong First-Quarter Sales Expected

Autoliv expects consolidated net sales to jump by more than 70% in the first quarter. At the moment, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter is 54 cents per share, which is up more than 17% in 30 days.

As for the full year, ALV expects net sales to advance between 15% and 20%.

Fourth-Quarter EPS Tops Zacks Consensus

Autoliv just reported fourth-quarter non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.39, which easily beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. As the above graph shows, the company surpassed expectations in each quarter last year. (In fact, it has beaten in 8 out of the last 10 quarters.)

Net sales reached $1.67 billion, which was up 40% year over year from $1.2 billion. Organic sales were up 26%. Furthermore, its operating margin was the best since the second quarter of 2000.

ALV attributed its solid quarter to higher sales and the impact from its restructuring efforts.

Earnings Estimates for Autoliv

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2010 is currently at $2.85 per share (not including the impact from today's report). That guidance has advanced by nearly 24% in the past 2 months, including a gain of 4.4% in 30 days as 3 of 12 covering analysts revised higher.