Ford has increased its full-year profit guidance, attributing the move to resilient demand for its high-margin trucks and SUVs, while also cautioning that unexpected rises in raw material costs will pressure earnings.
Excluding credit revenue, Ford's first-quarter revenue reached $39.82 billion, a 6.4% increase year-over-year, surpassing expectations by $990 million. Adjusted earnings per share were $0.66, beating the forecast of $0.47.
The company stated it now anticipates full-year adjusted EBIT to be in the range of $8.5 billion to $10.5 billion, a $500 million increase from its prior forecast. However, Ford did not raise its full-year outlook by the same magnitude as its significant first-quarter beat, signaling a more cautious view for the coming year amid rising energy and raw material prices linked to the war in Iran.
Ford projects that profits will take a $2 billion hit from increased costs for materials like steel and aluminum, a figure double its previous estimate, aligning with concerns voiced by competitor General Motors.
The first-quarter results underscore how Ford's strategic refocus on producing high-price trucks and SUVs is driving profitability despite macroeconomic turbulence. The company's Ford Blue unit, encompassing traditional internal combustion engine and hybrid vehicles, reported EBIT of $1.94 billion for the quarter, a substantial increase from $96 million a year earlier.
This performance came even as Ford's total U.S. vehicle sales declined by 8.8% in the quarter, with sales of the F-Series pickup trucks falling 16%. Ford's Chief Financial Officer noted that large SUVs, such as the Explorer and Expedition, performed particularly well, with off-road performance variants accounting for nearly 25% of the company's U.S. sales. She stated, "These happen to be the higher-trim, higher-value vehicles."
The updated guidance also reflects a one-time benefit of $1.3 billion in the first quarter, resulting from a Supreme Court decision that overturned several tariffs from the Trump era. Ford warned that its raised expectations do not factor in a prolonged war in Iran or a potential U.S. economic recession. "Our team is actively managing a complex external environment," the CFO said.
Despite the positive news, Ford reported an adjusted free cash flow burn of $1.9 billion, citing heavy investment in building a new energy storage business and preparing for production of a $30,000 electric pickup truck slated for next year.
Earlier this year, sales and production of F-Series trucks were significantly impacted by the aftermath of a fire last year at a Novelis Inc. aluminum plant in New York, which supplies materials for truck body panels. Ford indicated the plant is not expected to resume operations until this summer and warned that truck production volumes will not normalize until the second half of the year. The production constraints cost Ford approximately $2 billion in lost volume, forcing the company to source aluminum from overseas and pay expensive tariffs to manufacture body panels. The CFO noted that, despite the Supreme Court ruling, Ford still expects tariffs from the Trump era to impact current-year earnings by about $1 billion.
Following the outbreak of war in Iran on February 28, U.S. gasoline prices surged and consumer confidence hit historic lows. This has weighed heavily on Ford's stock, which is down more than 7% year-to-date, reversing a strong rally from 2025. An analyst from Morningstar commented prior to the earnings release, "The decline in Ford's stock almost exactly coincided with the start of the bombing. A confluence of issues hit at once, which is unfortunate because it's not all their fault."
This earnings report comes as Ford recently restructured its loss-making electric vehicle business, which included a $19.5 billion impairment charge for underperforming EV assets. The head of Ford's EV unit, Doug Field, announced his departure earlier this month; his responsibilities were assumed by Chief Operating Officer Kumar Galhotra in a major management reshuffle.
Ford's stable logistics and commercial vehicle business, Ford Pro, reported EBIT of $1.68 billion, up from $1.31 billion a year ago. Ford stated that sales of some work trucks were delayed until the second half of the year due to F-Series inventory shortages caused by the supplier fire.
The Model e electric vehicle division reported an EBIT loss of $777 million, an improvement from a loss of $849 million a year earlier. Ford's U.S. electric vehicle sales fell 70% in the first quarter after the company idled production of the F-150 Lightning plug-in pickup truck.
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