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Valued at a market cap of $39.5 billion, Ford Motor Company (F) develops, delivers, and services trucks, sport utility vehicles, commercial vans and cars, and Lincoln luxury vehicles. The Dearborn, Michigan-based company also provides financial services through Ford Credit, supporting vehicle financing and leasing.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are typically classified as “large-cap stocks,” and Ford fits the label perfectly, with its market cap exceeding this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the automobile industry. The company’s strengths lie in its strong brand reputation, global presence, and extensive manufacturing capabilities. Its expertise in mass production, supported by advanced manufacturing and supply chain efficiency, gives it a competitive edge over others.
This automobile manufacturer has dipped 32.9% from its 52-week high of $14.85, reached on July 18, 2024. It has declined 5.7% over the past three months, outperforming the First Trust S-Network Future Vehicles & Technology ETF’s (CARZ) 6.8% dip over the same time frame.
Moreover, on a YTD basis, the shares of Ford are marginally up, outpacing CARZ’s 5.4% decline over the same time frame. However, in the longer term, Ford has fallen 18.2% over the past 52 weeks, lagging behind CARZ’s 6.6% plunge.
To confirm its recent bullish trend, F began trading above its 50-day moving average in March. However, it has remained below its 200-day moving average since late July 2024.
On Mar. 5, Ford's shares closed up 5.8% after the Trump administration announced a one-month delay on tariffs for automakers whose vehicles meet the requirements of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
On Feb. 5, Ford released its Q4 earnings results. Its revenue reached $48.2 billion, marking a 4.8% increase from the previous year's quarter and exceeding consensus estimates by 5.5%. Additionally, its adjusted EPS surged 34.5% year over year to $0.39, surpassing Wall Street’s expectations of $0.34.
However, despite delivering better-than-expected results, shares of Ford fell 7.5% the following day. What disappointed investors the most was Ford’s fiscal 2025 guidance. It projects full-year adjusted EBIT between $7 billion and $8.5 billion and expects adjusted free cash flow to range between $3.5 billion and $4.5 billion. The guidance presumes headwinds related to market factors, which might have dampened investor confidence.
Ford has significantly lagged behind its rival, General Motors Company’s (GM) 21.7% gain over the past 52 weeks but has outpaced GM’s 9.7% decline on a YTD basis.
Despite Ford’s recent outperformance relative to its industry peers, analysts remain cautious about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” from the 22 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $10.29 suggests a slight 3.3% premium to its current levels.
On the date of publication, Neharika Jain did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
