Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Trading 2% Higher – Still a Buy?

Ford Motor (NYSE:F)’s stock price was up 2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $9.79 and last traded at $9.72. Approximately 30,910,404 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 90,672,883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on F. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ford Motor from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Ford Motor in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Barclays downgraded shares of Ford Motor from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $13.00 to $11.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. BNP Paribas raised shares of Ford Motor to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on Ford Motor in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.77.

Ford Motor Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.58 billion, a PE ratio of 6.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $9.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.35.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The auto manufacturer reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.04. Ford Motor had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 3.18%. Research analysts expect that Ford Motor will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

Ford Motor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.16%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Ford Motor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.10%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ford Motor by 1.1% in the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 92,950 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $982,000 after buying an additional 969 shares during the last quarter. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its stake in shares of Ford Motor by 38.5% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 3,600 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Ford Motor by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,693 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ford Motor by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 80,728 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $799,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Finally, Atlas Brown Inc. boosted its position in Ford Motor by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 63,323 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $627,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047 shares in the last quarter. 58.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ford Motor

Ford Motor Company develops, delivers, and services a range of Ford trucks, commercial cars and vans, sport utility vehicles, and Lincoln luxury vehicles worldwide. It operates through Ford Blue, Ford Model e, and Ford Pro; Ford Next; and Ford Credit segments. The company sells Ford and Lincoln vehicles, service parts, and accessories through distributors and dealers, as well as through dealerships to commercial fleet customers, daily rental car companies, and governments.