Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Trading 3.4% Higher – Time to Buy?

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F)’s share price traded up 3.4% on Friday . The company traded as high as $14.44 and last traded at $14.3590. 49,414,080 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 18% from the average daily volume of 59,939,555 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ford Motor from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Ford Motor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Ford Motor from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ford Motor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $14.50 to $17.50 in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Ford Motor from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.68.

Ford Motor Trading Up 3.4%

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.26 billion, a PE ratio of -7.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The auto manufacturer reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.09. Ford Motor had a negative net margin of 3.93% and a positive return on equity of 17.23%. The business had revenue of $48.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ford Motor Company will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ford Motor Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 11th. Ford Motor’s payout ratio is presently -32.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ford Motor

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Ford Motor in the first quarter worth approximately $304,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Ford Motor by 41.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 147,760 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 43,385 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ford Motor during the second quarter worth approximately $172,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Ford Motor by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 267,895 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,907,000 after purchasing an additional 55,741 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in Ford Motor by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 1,823,614 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $19,786,000 after purchasing an additional 26,526 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.74% of the company’s stock.

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.