Ford records big financial gains, take subtle dig at EV rivals

Ford’s stock prices have been on the up for quite some time, motivated in part by the brand’s domination of its ‘big three’ American rivals and its progress with electric vehicles. 

And earlier this week its stock price growth ticked over a significant milestone for the brand. With share prices increasing to US$25.69, the brand’s market value has exceeded US$100billion for the first time in its history. 

Speaking to Bloomberg about the news, Ford CEO Jim Farley credited recent growth to the brand’s plug-in projects, seemingly sliding in a subtle dig at rivals like Tesla, as well as the legacy manufacturers that aren’t keeping up. 

“I’m proud the company is getting recognized for our commitment to electrification,” he said. 

“The market is saying we like this Ford move into battery-electric and we have more confidence in the delivery of the base business. We like that they’re moving now to scale while others are years away.”

Farley added that investors “seem to like that we’ve come up with a way to execute the product in a way that it’s in high demand. […] Although I’m extremely thankful for the recognition of the team’s hard work, in my mind, we’re just getting started.”

It’s well documented that the controversially styled Tesla Cybertruck has had its production delayed several years. Production of the model was recently delayed until the end of 2022, and has now been confirmed this month to be delayed until 2023.

Although Ford hasn’t given a hard and fast date on production commencement for its much anticipated F-150 Lightning, it’s set to kick off soon in this current quarter. Ford recently pledged to double its production capacity for the electric pick-up, following significant pre-order interest.

According to Farley, Ford will be building 600,000 EVs a year by 2024. This aligns with the brand’s plans to phase out pure internal combustion engines in most models over the coming years. 

These changes are already being felt in New Zealand, with Ford’s local arm confirming last year that it would begin phasing out ICE SUVs and passenger cars outside of its performance models, and the Everest.