Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) Short Interest Down 12.9% in January

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 172,361,492 shares, a drop of 12.9% from the January 15th total of 197,954,310 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 62,352,802 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Currently, 4.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Currently, 4.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 62,352,802 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Ford Motor Stock Performance

Shares of F stock opened at $13.86 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $55.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.66. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $13.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.73. Ford Motor has a one year low of $8.44 and a one year high of $14.50.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The auto manufacturer reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.07. Ford Motor had a positive return on equity of 10.16% and a negative net margin of 4.37%.The company had revenue of $45.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.39 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ford Motor will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

Ford Motor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Ford Motor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -29.13%.

Institutional Trading of Ford Motor

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in Ford Motor during the 1st quarter worth approximately $304,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Ford Motor by 41.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 147,760 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 43,385 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Ford Motor by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 331,080 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $3,554,000 after purchasing an additional 13,721 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in Ford Motor by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 178,276 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 29,376 shares during the period. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Ford Motor by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 57,419 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $623,000 after purchasing an additional 2,741 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

F has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Ford Motor from $11.00 to $13.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Ford Motor from $11.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Ford Motor from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Wall Street Zen cut Ford Motor from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Ford Motor from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.02.

About Ford Motor

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is an American multinational automaker headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan. Founded by Henry Ford in 1903, the company became an early pioneer of mass-production techniques with the Model T and the adoption of the moving assembly line. Today, Ford designs, manufactures, markets and services a broad range of vehicles and mobility solutions under the Ford and Lincoln brands, spanning passenger cars, SUVs, pickup trucks and commercial vehicles.

Ford’s business activities extend beyond vehicle production to include parts and aftermarket services, fleet and commercial sales, and automotive financing through Ford Motor Credit Company.