Ford Earnings Weak Around the World

On a GAAP basis, the company posted EPS of $0.24, which excludes a $0.01 per share charge for layoffs in Belgium and the United Kingdom and a $15 million loss in Romania.

Ford issued 2014 guidance in December that included a drop in profits from $8.6 billion in 2013 to a range of $7 billion to $8 billion in 2014. The company reaffirmed that revenue guidance and said that previous guidance on operating margin and operating cash flow guidance was also on track to meet forecasts.

Operating margin for the full year is expected to be lower than last year’s 5.4%; in the first quarter, operating margin came in at 3.4%. Operating cash flow was forecast to come in “substantially” lower than 2013’s total of $6.1 billion; first-quarter operating cash flow came in at $1.2 billion.

The company’s CEO:

We had a solid quarter, and we are on track with our most aggressive product launch schedule in our history. Our One Ford plan continues to deliver as we serve customers in more markets around the world with a full family of vehicles committed to best-in-class quality, fuel efficiency, safety, smart design and value.

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Ford’s North American operating margin fell 3.8% to 7.3% for the first quarter, and pretax earnings fell from $2.39 billion to $1.5 billion. Ford blamed warranty reserve increases to pay for recalls and, of course, the weather. Ford sold 717,000 vehicles in North America in the first quarter, compared with 735,000 in the first quarter of last year.

In South America, Ford’s operating margin for the quarter fell to a negative 27%, from a negative 9.4% a year ago. Vehicle sales fell from 113,000 to 104,000, and the pretax loss more than doubled to $510 million. Ford blamed exchange rate effects, higher costs due to higher local inflation and lower volume.

Operating margins also remained negative in Europe, but not quite as bad, rising from a negative 6.5% a year ago to negative 4.0% this year. Revenues rose $1.2 billion to $7.8 billion, and the pretax net loss narrowed to $194 million from $425 million a year ago.

The company improved its market share in China to 4.5%, and market share in the Asia Pacific region rose to 3.4% from 2.7% a year ago. Ford still trails well behind General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) and Volkswagen, numbers one and two in the Chinese market, but it is gaining ground, having moved into fifth place and nipping at the heels of Nissan.

Ford shares were down about 2.5% in premarket trading Friday, at $15.91 in a 52-week range of $13.35 to $18.02. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $17.80 before this report.

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