Ford Motor misses by $0.06, reports revs in-line; reaffirms FY14 guidance
Reports Q1 (Mar) earnings of $0.25 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.06 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.31; auto sector rev was unchanged from the year-ago period at $33.9 bln.
"The underlying run rate of our business in the first quarter was strong," said Bob Shanks, executive vice president and chief financial officer. "We are particularly encouraged by Asia Pacific's record profit, driven by very positive customer response to our new products, underscoring the traction and success of our growth plans in what is now the largest market in the world. In addition, the improvement in Europe confirms the progress we continue to make toward achieving a profit in 2015."
- Total Automotive first quarter wholesale volume increased by 6 percent from a year ago, while Automotive revenue was unchanged. The higher volume is more than explained by higher industry volumes in all regions except South America, improved market share in Asia Pacific and a favorable change in dealer stocks. The decrease in operating margin and pre-tax profit for the first quarter is more than explained by lower results in North America and South America.
- Automotive operating-related cash flow of $1.2 billion. Ford ended first quarter with Automotive gross cash of $25.2 billion, exceeding debt by $9.5 billion, and a strong liquidity position of $36.6 billion
- Wholesale volume and revenue both increased from a year ago, with continued market share gains in Asia Pacific, driven by record market share in China
- Asia Pacific reported record profit for any quarter; North America and Middle East & Africa were profitable; Europe reduced its loss by more than half and South America incurred a larger loss compared with a year ago
- Ford Credit once again delivered solid results
"The underlying run rate of our business in the first quarter was strong," said Bob Shanks, executive vice president and chief financial officer. "We are particularly encouraged by Asia Pacific's record profit, driven by very positive customer response to our new products, underscoring the traction and success of our growth plans in what is now the largest market in the world. In addition, the improvement in Europe confirms the progress we continue to make toward achieving a profit in 2015."