Ford Motor Company (F, Financial) raced to an all-time record for both new retail vehicle orders and retail orders filled in January, the company reported on Wednesday.
Ford took in over 90,000 new vehicle orders in January, up by 71,000 from a year ago, and 20,000 more than in December of 2021. “Vehicles are moving off dealer lots at a record pace, as 37% of Ford’s retail sales in January came from previously placed customer orders.”
On the strength of new “must-have” products, Ford brand sales were up 1.4%, according to the company, even as the industry declined 9.0%. Overall, Ford and Lincoln’s total market share in January was 13.9% – up 1.3 percentage points from a year ago.
Electric vehicle (EV) sales had their best start ever, with record January sales. Ford’s EV sales in January grew almost four times faster than the overall industry average. With a total of 13,169 EVs sold, Ford's EV segment grew 167.2%, with market share nearly doubling to reach 10.9%. “Sparking additional momentum this year, more than 300 small, medium and large business customers place orders for 10,000 all electric E-Transit vans; Walmart (WMT, Financial) to take delivery of 1,100 E-Transits.”
At the market’s close on Wednesday, the company’s stock price was at $20.63, down 0.15% for the day, or 0.03 cents per share. After hours, the share price retreated to $20.11.
“Ford market share increased over a year ago on strong demand for our newest products such as Bronco, Maverick and Mach-E,” said Andrew Frick, Vice President of Ford Sales U.S. and Canada, in a statement. “Ford took in a record 90,000 new vehicle orders in January. Vehicles are turning at a record pace on dealer lots, as we work to fill these orders. This year represents a turning point for Ford in electrified vehicles, as our electrified portfolio grew at nearly four times the rate of the industry segment, with E-Transit and F-150 Lightning set to hit the market.”
The Dearborn, Michigan-based company’s strong results should come as little surprise to those who have been following recent developments. “To some, Ford looks like an overnight success,” Barrons, said. “Its shares have exploded, gaining about 88% over the past year, crushing the comparable returns of General Motors (GM, Financial) and even electric-vehicle leader Tesla (TSLA, Financial). Since CEO Jim Farley took over in early October 2018, Ford shares have gained a total of about 205%. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average have gained about 34% and 26%, respectively.”
Ford pickups, including F-Series, Ranger and Maverick, totaled 62,293 units, outselling General Motors' (GM, Financial) entire pickup truck line in January. F-Series sales in January totaled 50,543. Overall, the market share of the F-Series increased 0.5% over last year and began the year as the best-selling pickup in the U.S.
Ford brand SUV sales were 60,382 in January – giving Ford a record SUV start to the 2022 calendar year. New SUV products, including Bronco, Bronco Sport and Mustang Mach-E, added 16,692 vehicles to the SUV sales portfolio, while Escape sales posted a strong gain of 17.2% over a year ago.
With continued industry segmentation out of cars and Ford’s focus on trucks and SUVs, Ford said it saw higher market share and transaction pricing, up $4,900 over a year ago. In 2021, the company saw continued growth in membership of Ford Pass and Lincoln Way apps. U.S. members totaled nearly 8 million.
Ford plans to spend as much as $20 billion to reorganize its business for the electric future. “The automaker is also mulling whether to spin off some of its EV business as a special acquisition company (SPAC) in order to attract more investment,” noted The Verge. “Ford is reportedly putting former Apple (AAPL, Financial) and Tesla executive Doug Field in charge of the reorganization, which will include converting its factories from gas-powered to electric vehicle production and hiring more engineers.”
