Al Root
Ford Motor shares have been battered by rising gasoline prices amid ongoing fighting in the Middle East.
High gas prices can be a headwind to sales of less fuel efficient trucks, that Ford loves to sell, but in this instance they are have provided an opportunity for investors to snap up shares at a discount, according to UBS.
Tuesday, UBS analyst Joseph Spak upgraded Ford stock to Buy from Hold. His price target stayed the same at $15 per share, up 23% from recent levels. He sees a "credible path" to earnings per share of $2 in 2027. (The current Wall Street consensus is $1.86.)
Eventually, Ford can earn $3 a share as EV losses moderate. There is less pressure to sell EVs with changing policies by the Trump administration. Ford's EV division, Model e, lost $4.8 billion in 2025 and $5.1 billion in 2024. Ford's total operating profits in 2025 and 2024 were $6.8 billion and $10.2 billion, respectively.
Since the start of the Iran conflict, with gasoline prices up roughly $1 per gallon, Ford stock was off 14%, coming into Tuesday trading. That move is overdone and offers investors a chance to add to or create new positions in the stock, says Spak.
Ford shares were up 2.7% at $12.16 in premarket trading, while S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.2% and flat, respectively.
Coming into Tuesday trading, Ford stock was down 7% this year and up 25% over the past 12 months. Tariff fears weighed on shares in April 2025.
Investors will hear more about tariffs, EVs, energy prices, and new car demand when Ford reports first-quarter numbers on Apr. 29. Wall Street is looking for an operating profit of $1.3 billion. A year ago, Ford reported a first-quarter operating profit of $1 billion.
Overall, Wall Street remains cautious on Ford stock, with just 24% of analysts covering the company rating shares Buy, according to FactSet. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 typically ranges from 55% to 60%. The average analyst price target for Ford stock is almost $14 a share.
Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 14, 2026 07:44 ET (11:44 GMT)
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