Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ford Motor (NYSE:F) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on F. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ford Motor in a report on Monday, December 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Ford Motor from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ford Motor from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Ford Motor from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ford Motor from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ford Motor presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.18.

Ford Motor Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:F opened at $13.31 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.04. Ford Motor has a 52 week low of $8.44 and a 52 week high of $13.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. The stock has a market cap of $53.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47 and a beta of 1.60.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The auto manufacturer reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $50.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.08 billion. Ford Motor had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 11.94%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ford Motor will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ford Motor Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. Ford Motor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ford Motor

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec bought a new stake in Ford Motor during the first quarter valued at about $165,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its stake in shares of Ford Motor by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 290,119 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,910,000 after acquiring an additional 29,220 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Ford Motor during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $128,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Ford Motor in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its holdings in Ford Motor by 42.3% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 6,616,436 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $66,363,000 after purchasing an additional 1,966,267 shares in the last quarter. 58.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ford Motor

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is an American multinational automaker headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan. Founded by Henry Ford in 1903, the company became an early pioneer of mass-production techniques with the Model T and the adoption of the moving assembly line. Today, Ford designs, manufactures, markets and services a broad range of vehicles and mobility solutions under the Ford and Lincoln brands, spanning passenger cars, SUVs, pickup trucks and commercial vehicles.

Ford’s business activities extend beyond vehicle production to include parts and aftermarket services, fleet and commercial sales, and automotive financing through Ford Motor Credit Company.