Ford’s stock surge in financial markets reflects not so much performance in 2021 (closed with 1.9 million cars delivered; 6.8 percent less than in 2020) as investor optimism towards a multi-vector strategy , diversified and highly identifying. On the product side, Ford has chosen to break into the world of electric vehicles by updating the historic models of the brand with more than positive results. The F-150 pick-up will be available in the course of 2022 and the requests already appear more abundant than the production while the Mustang Mach-E lineage has allowed Ford to occupy the second place behind Tesla and ahead of GM, in terms of number of electrified machines sold in the United States.
The success of the battery-powered Mustang (from 2022 Ford expects a production of 200,000 units per year) has recently found further confirmation with the order for 184 Mach-E GTs from the New York police and the total value of the operation is around 11.5 Millions of dollars. Furthermore, although in the first half of January, the American company said it was closer to the creation of a special charging system developed in collaboration with the Purdue University, which could allow to restore the vehicle’s autonomy in five minutes by charging at a four times faster than fast charge.
A trillion Tesla. Here are the ten houses that are worth the most on the stock market
by Matteo Morichini
It is not yet clear when and if the above charging system will become operational and usable but what is clear is Ford’s proactivity in supporting the energy transition with scientific, engineering and financial research. The house of the oval holds 13 percent of Rivian shares (currently the ninth car manufacturer by market capitalization) and the shares in the native electric company, can be monetized or used to acquire and integrate components and knowledge. According to Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jones, “2021 was a revolutionary year for Ford and the most strategically important year for the company since the financial crisis”.
Ford’s rise in the financial markets is closely linked to the economic policies implemented by CEO Jim Farley who, since taking office in October 2020, has steered the company towards new destinations, restructured Ford +, moved part of the resources into the intensive production of Ev vehicles such as the F-150 Lightning (which has already exceeded 200,000 orders) and initiated a more open and direct dialogue with investors.
In his first fifteen months at the top, Farley pushed Ford stock to a staggering 200 percent plus, never before, a market capitalization of $ 100 billion (currently $ 97 billion). In addition to the successes in the Wall Street indices, Ford has demonstrated a proverbial ability to adapt and interpret current trends by making a name for itself also through suggestive restomods of its historic vans (the pick-up segment is dominated globally by Ford) and unique solutions such as the imminent supply of electrified parts for do-it-yourself assemblies following the online purchase; a sector also in great shape where Ford Performance already has an electric motor ready for $ 3,900, which private individuals will be able to mount on the classic car of preference.