According to analysts at Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), each pickup truck Ford and GM sell brings in anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000 in gross profit. For Ford, the F-series alone accounted for 90% of its earnings last year; at GM it was 66%. Those are cash cows not to be trifled with, but the U.S. automakers aren’t taking any chances as Ford recently unveiled its Atlas concept truck and GM is jiggering the Silverado and GMC Sierra lines. The question is, will truck buyers wait a few years until they’re on the market?
This is nice and cozy
As much as it’s fun to talk about these big, beefy trucks, it’s important to remember Ford has a softer side, too. The other two vehicles in the top 10 were the Fusion and the Escape, a midsize and compact car, and it had two more cars among the top 20. Ford may have sold twice as many pickups as it did Fusions, but Fusion sales were 65% ahead of what they were last January. And Escapes were up almost 16%, coming in at No. 10 on the list. Its F-series grew at almost 22%.
As a result, Ford is now only second to GM in market share, beating out both Toyota and Chrysler for the “we try harder” spot. I believe it has a good chance to keep growing that share and putting distance between it and the rest of the also-rans. It’s even been gaining ground in the hybrid market, where its Fusion is stealing customers and share from Toyota, calling 70% of the customers buying the hybrid vehicle “conquest” customers, or those who are new to the brand. Its market share jumped to 9% by the end of December, while Toyota’s fell to 8%.
Still a force to be reckoned with
Ford is generally recognized as one of the strongest global manufacturers, no doubt because of the financial pain it was willing to endure at the height of the financial crisis to get their balance sheet in order. It’s also generally expected to be the one that will weather the storm in good fashion and come out better on the other end because of its dominating presence in full-size pickup trucks that finance all its other divisions; a popular range of compact, midsize, and alt-fuel cars that are gaining market share; and strong profits that are only offset by a depressed European market.
I’d say that makes Ford stock one you should be willing to get behind the wheel with!
The article Is Ford Still a Great Investment? originally appeared on Fool.comand is written by Rich Duprey.
Fool contributor Rich Duprey has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Ford and General Motors and owns shares of Ford.
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