Years ago when everyone was scratching their heads at Ford Motor Company as they made huge changes, the tables have turned as Ford posts a third quarter profit of $997. It seems that when the private sector is allowed to correct itself, it does. Ford saw problems in the future and adjusted their way of business, while General Motors and Chrysler continued down the same failed path.
Bloomberg – Ford Earns $997 Million on Better Prices for Vehicles
Ford Motor Co., the only major U.S. automaker to avoid bankruptcy, rose after posting an unexpected third-quarter net income of $997 million, its first operating profit since early 2008 on smaller discounts and higher sales.On an adjusted basis, Ford reported a quarterly pretax profit of $1.1 billion, or 26 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier loss of $3 billion, or $1.32. Ford beat the 20 cents a share adjusted loss estimated by an average of 11 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. It expects to be “solidly profitable” in 2011.
Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally, who kept Ford out of Chapter 11 as General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC reorganized, increased market share and collected more from each sale. The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker rose as much as 12 percent, its biggest gain in more than six months, after posting its first consecutive quarterly net profit under Mulally.
“Ford is a company that’s well into a turnaround,” said Bernie McGinn, president of McGinn Investment Management of Alexandria, Virginia, which owns about 320,000 Ford shares. “They did it by themselves and didn’t take government money. That gives people a good gut feeling and they’re being rewarded for that.”