Trouble Maker Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 Ford posted $1B profits for Q3 http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091102/ap_on_bi_ge/us_earns_ford It's all about market share right now. DEARBORN, Mich. – Ford, the only Detroit automaker to dodge direct government aid and bankruptcy court, surprised investors with net income of nearly $1 billion in the third quarter and forecast a "solidly profitable" 2011. The automaker said Monday earnings were fueled by U.S. market share gains, cost cuts and the Cash for Clunkers program, which drew flocks of buyers to showrooms this summer. Ford's shares rose 58 cents, or 8.3 percent, to $7.58 in pre-market trading. The latest results signal that Ford's turnaround is on more solid ground. The company lost more than $14.6 billion last year and hasn't posted a full-year profit since 2005. While it made a profit in the second quarter, that was mainly due to debt reductions that cut its interest payments. Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford reported third-quarter net income of $997 million, or 29 cents per share. Ford also forecast a "solidly profitable" 2011. Previously the automaker said it would be break-even or better. Its key North American car and truck division posted a pretax profit of $357 million, the company's first quarter in the black since early 2005. Ford cited higher pricing, lower material costs and increased market share for the improvement. Excluding one-time items, Ford earned 26 cents per share, blowing away analysts' expectations of a loss of 12 cents. The earnings came despite an $800 million revenue drop. But Ford said it cut costs by $1 billion during the quarter, accomplished through layoffs in North America and Europe, reduced pension and retiree health care costs and improvements in productivity and product development. Chief financial officer Lewis Booth said the company took in $1.3 billion more than it spent in the quarter, an improvement over its $1 billion cash burn in the second quarter. "That's a huge deal," Booth said. Ford's plan to create demand and get better prices for its products, coupled with cost cuts, gave the company confidence that it will make money in 2011, Booth said. But Ford still faces obstacles in its turnaround. Last week, workers overwhelmingly rejected an agreement with the United Auto Workers that would have brought Ford's labor costs in line with rivals General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC. Workers objected to clauses limiting their right to strike and freezing entry-level wages, and felt the company was healthy enough and didn't need further concessions. Ford also has $26.9 billion in debt, up $800 million from the second quarter. The company avoided the same fate as rivals Chrysler and GM by mortgaging its factories and even the familiar blue oval logo to borrow $23.5 billion before credit markets froze last year. Ford didn't quantify the impact of Cash for Clunkers, which offered buyers rebates to trade in their vehicles. The program helped Ford cut costly incentives and raise production. It also won buyers; the fuel-efficient Ford Focus sedan and Ford Escape, a small SUV, were among the top five sellers under clunkers. Ford sales climbed 17 percent in August thanks to the program. Ford's revenue fell $800 million for the quarter, to $30.9 billion, due mainly to its financial services arm, Ford Motor Credit, making fewer loans. But the division still posted a pretax profit of $677 million, and revenue from auto operations rose slightly to $27.9 billion. Ford also has benefited from consumer goodwill after it declined government bailout money and didn't go into bankruptcy over the summer as GM and Chrysler did. Ford grabbed sales from its rivals, posting the largest increase in market share of any automaker in September. Ford expects an overall gain in U.S. market share in 2009, a feat it hasn't accomplished since 1995. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffro Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 :thumbup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Removed Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 ford = whats left of the big 3. lmao Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iwashmycar Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 "May the best market share win" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casper Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 I will NEVER buy a GM or Chrysler ever again. I have lost all respect them. Ford didn't take any bailout money, and look where they are. GM and Chrysler? Yeah, they're still laying people off. They should've been forced to file bankruptcy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallard Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 I will NEVER buy a GM or Chrysler ever again. I have lost all respect them. Ford didn't take any bailout money, and look where they are. GM and Chrysler? Yeah, they're still laying people off. They should've been forced to file bankruptcy. A lot of the layoffs are done. Both GM and Chrysler are hiring people (contract) for development. Chrysler has 500 positions and I'm not sure about the number GM is hiring. There have been huge culture changes at both companies. P.S. Good work Ford. They've actually been coming out with vehicles that I like and their JD Power, Consumer Reports, and sales numbers prove it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tbutera2112 Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 i was going to buy $1000 worth of ford stocks when it down below $2....but i procrastinated and just never got it done... kicking myself in the balls right now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Removed Posted November 2, 2009 Report Share Posted November 2, 2009 (edited) I will NEVER buy a GM or Chrysler ever again. I have lost all respect them. Ford didn't take any bailout money, and look where they are. GM and Chrysler? Yeah, they're still laying people off. They should've been forced to file bankruptcy. A lot of the layoffs are done. Both GM and Chrysler are hiring people (contract) for development. Chrysler has 500 positions and I'm not sure about the number GM is hiring. There have been huge culture changes at both companies. P.S. Good work Ford. They've actually been coming out with vehicles that I like and their JD Power, Consumer Reports, and sales numbers prove it. Gm source's got ahold of me wanting me to come back to the general...money was really good, just didnt want to move to Michigan - Edited November 3, 2009 by Removed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
93toNV Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Good job Ford!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTHER91 Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Word Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buteo Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 ....dont they have 27 billion or so in debt? Good for Ford, a STEP in the right direction but there is still lots of work to be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted November 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 ....dont they have 27 billion or so in debt? Good for Ford, a STEP in the right direction but there is still lots of work to be done. Did you read the article? :gtfo: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Let's see if they can keep it up or if this is a one quarter wonder due to C4C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
excell Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Wonderful. Ford will sell me my next vehicle. I've been proud of how they handled this whole situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miller Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 ....dont they have 27 billion or so in debt? Good for Ford, a STEP in the right direction but there is still lots of work to be done. No, they don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramsey Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 i drive 2 fords... go ford. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Removed Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Let's see if they can keep it up or if this is a one quarter wonder due to C4C that was 2nd quarter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AWW$HEEET Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 im more of a cheby man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SicShelby Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 ....dont they have 27 billion or so in debt? Good for Ford, a STEP in the right direction but there is still lots of work to be done. They're still in the hole: As of Sept. 30, Ford’s total debt was $24.2 billion, but with future pension contributions and payments owed to a retiree health care fund, the company’s total financial obligations are about $35 billion. http://www.freep.com/article/20091103/BUSINESS0102/91103068/1333/business01/Analysts-praise-Ford-for-restructuring-its-debt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmrmnhrm Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Ford is easily in the best position of the three right now, however, there are still some pretty big stumbling blocks to get over: 1. They basically mortgaged everything before the credit markets froze up. This is how they were able to avoid bailouts and bankruptcy, but it also means there's nothing left in the cupboard should they need more. The interest rate on this isn't bad, but when you're talking billions of debt, that's a couple million in interest. 2. The UAW rank and file. Both the UAW leadership and Ford board know that unless they can get cost-competitive with the transplants down south, Ford's going to be right back up shit creek in a couple of years because of legacy burden. Unfortunately, the rank-and-file just overwhelmingly defeated a proposal that would have started this process. The guys on the floor are saying, "Hey, Ford's in good shape, why do we need to compromise?" No, Ford is NOT in good shape, it's just in a much better place than your brothers down the street at GM and Chrysler. 3. Future projections/consumption. All C4C really did was pull future demand forward. Unless there's a real recovery, with real jobs, the next two or three quarters are going to be pretty dry compared to where they would have been. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallard Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 that was 2nd quarter Uh, the second quarter is April-June. C4C was definitely the 3rd quarter. They claim that even without C4C they would have made money, but they also had some one time accounting items that made them some money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted November 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 A lot of the layoffs are done. Both GM and Chrysler are hiring people (contract) for development. Chrysler has 500 positions and I'm not sure about the number GM is hiring. There have been huge culture changes at both companies. Been meaning to get a hold of you and see how things are going up there... so, how are things going up there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallard Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 Been meaning to get a hold of you and see how things are going up there... so, how are things going up there? Getting better, but still not great. Michigan unemployment is the highest in the nation and the city of Detroit is the worst in the state (about 30% last I saw). There are finally some engineering jobs opening up and companies are beginning to hire. My wife was laid off for 9 months and just got back to work a few weeks ago. Work is getting busy for me. Now that every manufacturer is trying to rush new models and refreshes out as fast as possible I'm going to be swamped with work. The bad news is they are due to be released for 2011 and they're not going to have the first cars built until Feb-Apr of 2010. That means in addition to the 12 weeks I get to live in a hotel in northern MI, I also get to go to Arizona, New Zealand, and possibly Sweden and Alaska (depending on timing and vehicle availability). Being busy is better than being bored though! Finally starting to see some really cool things happening at all the automakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ry_Trapp01647545522 Posted November 4, 2009 Report Share Posted November 4, 2009 ford = whats left of the big 3. lmao it wasn't but 3-4 years ago that all of the major "journalists" in all of the major auto publications were saying that GM was miles ahead of ford as far as being able to make a recovery. friggin morons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitrousbird Posted November 5, 2009 Report Share Posted November 5, 2009 Odd, I am into cars based on the car, not the culture of the company. I still feel GM puts out a better overall product than Ford. Chrysler...I still can't figure out why they saved them. Ford at least puts out some interesting vehicles - Chrysler just isn't getting it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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