Question

what do investors think of the Ford Company Future prospects based on its past performance in 2019

Answer 1

Ford motors have regained the trust of some investors by its changing strategy by shifting focus from selling cars to SUVs and trucks. But this won't last long as there was a very poor performance in the last quarter of 2019 and analysts see revenue continue struggling through 2021 with a growth rate of less than 1%.

Margins are the ones where ford has been struggling the most as the operating margin has declined since 2015 from 7.6% to less than 1% which is not a good sign at all as it signals a decline in the profit-generating ability of the firm.

Ford's move of shifting focus is a huge gamble as it is assuming that the demand for the bigger vehicles will stay strong which isn't likely in the current scenario. The new hybrid versions of the truck could help but their procurement cost is very high in comparison to the general ones. So the improvement of operating margin seems to be very difficult.

The stocl valuation has fallen the most in the last two years, and the outlook of the technical charts shows a bearish trend in the future. Options betting are also bearish so the investors are skeptical about the company and have a bearish view.