What Led to Ford’s (F, $8.54) Underperformance in 2018?
Ford published its fourth quarter earnings and reported a loss of $116 million.
But the news that caught everyone’s attention is that the company reported a 28% y-o-y drop in its operating income, excluding the pension charge and other one-time items, both for the quarter and for the year. After the drop, operating profit for the quarter stood at $1.5 billion and $7 billion for the year.
On a per share basis, Ford earned $0.30 in the fourth quarter and $1.30 for the full year, both down from the previous year.
Even though Ford sold more high-end vehicles in the fourth quarter than it did in the same quarter of 2017, expensive key commodities, rising costs associated with the on-going Takata airbag recall, and losses at Ford's Chinese joint ventures overruled the achievements.
Analysts believe that key reason for Ford’s fourth quarter loss is its whopping one-time charge of $1.179 billion that left it with hefty on-paper losses.
Segment-wise, in North America, Ford earned $2 billion in the fourth quarter, and for the full year, it earned $7.6 billion, down from $8.1 billion in 2017. In South America, Ford lost $199 million in the fourth quarter, and for the full year, Ford lost $678 million, an improvement of $75 million from 2017. In Europe, Ford lost $199 million in the fourth quarter, with a full year loss of $398 million. In the Middle East and Africa, Ford lost $49 million in the fourth quarter with full year losses up to $7 million. In Asia Pacific, Ford lost $381 million in the fourth quarter, with a $534 million loss in China.
Momentum Indicator for F turns positive, indicating new upward trend
F saw its Momentum Indicator move above the 0 level on June 27, 2025. This is an indication that the stock could be shifting in to a new upward move. Traders may want to consider buying the stock or buying call options. Tickeron's A.I.dvisor looked at 81 similar instances where the indicator turned positive. In of the 81 cases, the stock moved higher in the following days. The odds of a move higher are at .
Technical Analysis (Indicators)
Bullish Trend Analysis
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) for F just turned positive on June 20, 2025. Looking at past instances where F's MACD turned positive, the stock continued to rise in of 47 cases over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are .
Following a 3-day Advance, the price is estimated to grow further. Considering data from situations where F advanced for three days, in of 318 cases, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are .
The Aroon Indicator entered an Uptrend today. In of 259 cases where F Aroon's Indicator entered an Uptrend, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued Uptrend are .
Bearish Trend Analysis
The 10-day RSI Indicator for F moved out of overbought territory on July 11, 2025. This could be a bearish sign for the stock. Traders may want to consider selling the stock or buying put options. Tickeron's A.I.dvisor looked at 39 similar instances where the indicator moved out of overbought territory. In of the 39 cases, the stock moved lower in the following days. This puts the odds of a move lower at .
The Stochastic Oscillator demonstrated that the ticker has stayed in the overbought zone for 8 days. The longer the ticker stays in the overbought zone, the sooner a price pull-back is expected.
Following a 3-day decline, the stock is projected to fall further. Considering past instances where F declined for three days, the price rose further in of 62 cases within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are .
F broke above its upper Bollinger Band on July 01, 2025. This could be a sign that the stock is set to drop as the stock moves back below the upper band and toward the middle band. You may want to consider selling the stock or exploring put options.
The Tickeron Valuation Rating of (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is seriously undervalued in the industry. This rating compares market capitalization estimated by our proprietary formula with the current market capitalization. This rating is based on the following metrics, as compared to industry averages: P/B Ratio (1.235) is normal, around the industry mean (6.217). P/E Ratio (12.306) is within average values for comparable stocks, (17.826). Projected Growth (PEG Ratio) (0.785) is also within normal values, averaging (5.723). Dividend Yield (0.045) settles around the average of (0.042) among similar stocks. P/S Ratio (0.305) is also within normal values, averaging (79.562).
The Tickeron Price Growth Rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating steady price growth. F’s price grows at a higher rate over the last 12 months as compared to S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating well-balanced risk and returns. The average Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for the industry is 83, placing this stock slightly better than average.
The Tickeron SMR rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating strong sales and a profitable business model. SMR (Sales, Margin, Return on Equity) rating is based on comparative analysis of weighted Sales, Income Margin and Return on Equity values compared against S&P 500 index constituents. The weighted SMR value is a proprietary formula developed by Tickeron and represents an overall profitability measure for a stock.
The Tickeron PE Growth Rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), pointing to worse than average earnings growth. The PE Growth rating is based on a comparative analysis of stock PE ratio increase over the last 12 months compared against S&P 500 index constituents.
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General Information
a manufacturer of automobiles and trucks
Industry MotorVehicles
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