Ford Lifts Profit Guidance While F-150 Lightning, New Vehicles See Strong Demand

Ford joined General Motors with upbeat earnings guidance and sees strong reservations for critical new vehicles including its first electric truck. Ford stock rose.

The No. 2 U.S. auto giant said Thursday that it expects adjusted pretax earnings for the second quarter to surpass its own expectations and be "significantly better" than a year ago.

That's despite the semiconductor shortage, which Ford said April 28 would halve its planned Q2 production and reduce full-year adjusted EBIT to $5.5 billion-$6.5 billion.

Ford did not offer specific Q2 guidance on April 28 or Thursday. It will report for Q2 and offer outlook for the rest of the year July 28.

On Wednesday, GM forecast adjusted earnings before taxes of $8.5 billion-$9.5 billion in the first half of 2021, up from an earlier view for $5.5 billion, due to strong demand for its SUVs and trucks. GM remains cautious for the full year.

Also Thursday, Ford touted 100,000 reservations for the F-150 Lightning, its first all-electric pickup truck and Tesla Cybertruck rival. That's up from 20,000 reported May 20 after a launch event, and 70,000 on May 26.

Meanwhile, its new compact Maverick truck has 36,000 reservations, just a week after unveiling. Ford also reported 20,000 reservations for the all-electric E-Transit commercial van and 190,000 for the new, full-size Bronco SUV.

CEO Jim Farley will further address Q2 financial guidance at a Deutsche Bank auto industry conference Thursday afternoon.

Ford Stock

Shares rose 1.3% to 15.22 in Thursday's stock market. Ford stock, on the IBD Leaderboard, is extended from a cup-without-handle 13.72 buy point, cleared late May on its bold EV shift. GM stock eased 1% to 61.07 as it eyes a 63.54 cup-shaped buy point.

On Wednesday, GM announced it will invest $35 billion to develop electric vehicles (EVs) and autonomous vehicles (AVs) through 2025. That's a 30% increase from its most recent forecast for $27 billion set last November, and a 75% increase from an initial forecast of $20 billion set in March 2020.

By comparison, Ford in May announced $30 billion on EV- AV spending through 2025, up from a prior view for $22 billion.

But Ford's investments include years prior to 2020, while GM's spending is for 2020 through 2025.