The Ford Display will be seen at the New York International Auto Show on April 16th, 2025.
Daniel Devries | CNBC
Detroit – Ford Motor It broke Wall Street’s first quarter expectations, but suspended financial guidance for 2025 amid a $2.5 billion impact on President Donald Trump’s tariffs this year.
The Detroit automaker said it expects to offset $1 billion in these costs through remedial action and pricing expectations for the total impact of $1.5 billion in 2025.
Ford cited the “potential for disruption of the supply chain across the industry that affects short-term risks, particularly the industry-wide supply chain that affects production,” and the possibility of future or increased US, among other potential impacts such as retaliatory tariffs as reasons to draw guidance.
The impact of tariffs is particularly below $4 billion to $5 billion General Motors Ford said it is expected to be a result of Trump’s tariffs as it imports fewer vehicles than its Crosstown rivals. GM said it is expected to offset at least 30% of these costs.
The automotive industry has received a 25% tariff on imported vehicles that came into effect in early April and a 25% tax on auto parts that are not compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada agreement that came into effect on Saturday.
Without tariffs, Ford said it was “tracking” towards initial guidance, including adjusted interest and pre-tax revenues, or $7 billion to $8.5 billion in EBIT. Adjusted free cash flow between $3.5 billion and $4.5 billion. Capital expenditures of $8 billion to $9 billion.
“The first quarter results show that the Ford+ (turnaround) plan is working,” Ford CFO Shelley House told the media over the phone. “We are turning this company into a higher growth, higher margins, more capital efficiency, more durable business.”
Ford has not made any major changes to its North American manufacturing plans publicly, but it has taken several steps to ease customs costs. They include halting US exports to China, adjusting for changes in Chinese-made imports and other logistics.
The automaker said the adjustments reduced the impact on tariffs in the first quarter by 35%, about $200 million.
Here’s how Ford did it based on the average analyst estimates compiled by LSEG:
Earnings per share: 14 cents adjusted vs. 2 cents forecast: $374.2 billion vs. $362.1 billion
In the first quarter, Ford reported a 5% decline in total revenue compared to the previous year’s $40.7 billion, $1.02 billion and net income of $471 million. This compares to the first quarter of 2024, which includes revenue of $42.8 billion, including $39.89 billion in auto revenue, net income of $1.33 billion, and adjusted profits of interest and taxes of $2.76 billion.
Ford’s traditional “blue” operations reported a mere 3% decline in revenue, but in the first quarter, EBIT results fell to around $96 million. Its “professional” commercial business reported revenues declined to $15.2 billion by 16%, with EBIT results of $1.31 billion, down from more than $3 billion the previous year.
Ford’s “Model E” electric vehicle business reduced its losses to $849 million from $1.33 billion a year ago in the first quarter of this year.
This is developing news. Please check for updates.
