UPDATE 1-Lear profit, sales up on strong showing in N. America

Oct 26 (Reuters) - Auto parts maker Lear Corp beat Wall Street third-quarter profit and sales expectations and increased its forecast for full-year net income by $15 million, based on strong North American sales.

Lear's net income was $121.4 million, or $1.23 per share, compared with $100.7 million, or 95 cents per share a year ago.

Adjusted earnings per share were $1.29, the company said on Friday. The earnings beat analyst expectations of $1.20 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Overall, Lear's sales were $3.54 billion, up 2 percent from a year earlier. Analysts had expected revenue of $3.47 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Lear, based in suburban Detroit, said it expects full-year adjusted income to be between $520 million and $560 million, up from a previous forecast of $510 million to $540 million, primarily because of lower expected tax expense.

In the quarter, Lear repurchased 1.3 million shares of its common stock for $50 million.