Ford's Q2 Better Than Guided, Improvement Expected 2021
Ford reported second-quarter results ravaged by the coronavirus that forced shutdowns, including six weeks of idle time in North America.
Ford F reported second-quarter results ravaged by the coronavirus that forced shutdowns, including six weeks of idle time in North America. Still, the adjusted EBIT loss, including mobility and Ford Credit, of $1.9 billion came in far below the over $5 billion loss guided to in April. Management was vague as to why but did credit execution by its people and we think it is possible the over $5 billion figure assumed the worse for second quarter and instead U.S. industry volumes improved for May and June from April levels. A $1.8 billion favorable fixed cost variance year over year and $2.4 billion in pricing and cost tailwinds, mostly from North America and Europe, partially offset a $5.7 billion headwind from volume and mix. In first quarter, North America only had operating profit of $346 million, so we feared a multibillion loss in second quarter, but the segment lost $974 million. Adjusted diluted EPS of a loss of $0.35 beat the Refinitiv consensus of a $1.17 loss and we calculate the company excluding Ford Credit burned about $5.5 billion of free cash compared with a $715 million burn in the prior year’s quarter.
We see no reason to change our fair value estimate and we remain optimistic about new product driving improved results in 2021. We think the new generation F-150, due late this year sufficiently upgraded the interior and added other functions such as an onboard generator to remain competitive against GM and Ram. Ford’s move to bring three new Broncos (Bronco Sport late this year and 2-door and 4-door models next spring) to the off-road segment will likely prove to be a huge success and COO Jim Farley said the vehicle already has over 100,000 reservations, far above initial expectations. Guidance is vague given COVID-19 but management did say the third quarter will have total company adjusted EBIT between $0.5-$1.5 billion but fourth quarter and the full year will be a loss. Launch costs for the F-150 and Mach-E will be a fourth-quarter headwind.
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