Short Interest in Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Rises By 8.9%

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 129,450,000 shares, a growth of 8.9% from the May 15th total of 118,840,000 shares. Currently, 3.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 48,620,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ford Motor

In other Ford Motor news, Director Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. sold 81,234 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.09, for a total value of $982,119.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 168,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,038,386.09. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ford Motor

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its position in Ford Motor by 2.6% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 32,527 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ford Motor by 29.8% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,604 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 828 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ford Motor by 1.7% in the first quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 48,916 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $650,000 after acquiring an additional 836 shares during the last quarter. First United Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Ford Motor by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 16,486 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $201,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lee Financial Co lifted its holdings in shares of Ford Motor by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Lee Financial Co now owns 24,836 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 854 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.74% of the company’s stock.

Ford Motor Price Performance

NYSE:F opened at $11.78 on Wednesday. Ford Motor has a one year low of $9.63 and a one year high of $15.42. The company has a market cap of $47.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $12.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The auto manufacturer reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.07. Ford Motor had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 17.63%. The business had revenue of $42.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. Ford Motor’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Ford Motor will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Ford Motor Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.09%. Ford Motor’s dividend payout ratio is 61.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Ford Motor from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Ford Motor from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Ford Motor from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Ford Motor in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Ford Motor in a research note on Friday, March 15th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ford Motor presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.89.

About Ford Motor

Ford Motor Company develops, delivers, and services a range of Ford trucks, commercial cars and vans, sport utility vehicles, and Lincoln luxury vehicles worldwide. It operates through Ford Blue, Ford Model e, and Ford Pro; Ford Next; and Ford Credit segments. The company sells Ford and Lincoln vehicles, service parts, and accessories through distributors and dealers, as well as through dealerships to commercial fleet customers, daily rental car companies, and governments.