Ford raises full-year guidance after solid earnings beat

DETROIT — Ford Motor on Thursday raised its 2023 guidance after second-quarter earnings significantly beat Wall Street expectations on strong pricing and demand for the automaker’s trucks.

The company increased its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to a range of between $11 billion and $12 billion, up from a prior forecast $9 billion and $11 billion. It also upped its expected adjusted free cash flow from $6 billion to $6.5 billion and $7 billion.

There was pressure on Ford to raise its guidance after crosstown rival General Motors raised its yearly guidance Tuesday for the second time this year.

Here’s how Ford did during the second quarter, compared with what Wall Street expected based on average estimates compiled by Refinitiv:

• Adjusted earnings per share: 72 cents vs. 55 cents expected
• Automotive revenue: $42.43 billion vs. $40.38 billion expected

On an unadjusted basis, Ford reported net income of $1.92 billion, or 47 cents per share, substantially up from a year earlier when it earned $667 million, or 16 cents per share.

The automaker said total revenue for the quarter was $45 billion, up 12% from $40.2 billion a year earlier.

Ford shares were up about 2% in extended trading following the release.

It’s the second quarterly report in which the automaker broke down its financial results by business unit, instead of by region. The Detroit automaker earlier this year released revised results for 2021 and 2022 according to the new structure.

The automaker’s traditional business operations, known as Ford Blue, earned $2.31 billion during the quarter, assisting in offsetting $1.08 billion in losses of its “Model e” electric vehicle unit. The automaker’s Ford Pro commercial business earned $2.39 billion from April through June.

Investors are closely monitoring Ford’s EV business, especially after the automaker earlier this month cut pricing by as much as $10,000 on the F-150 Lightning electric pickup as production and inventory levels increase.

Ford said its adjusted earnings before interest and tax, or adjusted EBIT, jumped to $3.79 billion, up from $3.72 billion a year ago. Its adjusted margin dropped to 8.4%, from from 9.3% in the year-ago period, amid increased production and sales.

— CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.

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