American Axle & Manufacturing Q3 Beat Sends Suppliers Higher

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc.'s AXL modest earnings beat Friday appeared to send shares of at least several auto suppliers higher in early trading.

Auto-parts makers have been hit harder than the broader market in the recent sell-off, as investors worried that an up-cycle for the industry could be about to turn in markets like Europe and Asia.

Detroit-based American Axle posted third-quarter earnings growth Friday of 54 percent, to $0.63 per share, versus analysts expectation of $0.62 per share.

Revenue grew nearly 16 percent to $950.8 million, but missed the consensus target of $954.54 million.

American Axle gained 5 percent Friday, while Tower International Inc TOWR, BorgWarner Inc. BWA and Superior Industries International Inc. SUP were each up about 2.5 percent.