As Ford Gazes Into the Future, It Should Keep an Eye on the Present

By Trey Thoelcke Updated Jan 13, 6:44AM EST · Published Jun 16, 9:35AM EDT

Follow 24/7 Wall St. on Google

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

With an era of self-driving cars on the horizon, and faced with the rising millennial generation that shows little interest in auto ownership, Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) must be wondering about its future. Perhaps that’s why it set up the Ford Research and Innovation Center in Palo Alto, the heart of Silicon Valley, last year.

Projects at the center include research on human-machine interfaces to find out how drivers like to interact with their vehicles. The company is investigating systems that will change the thermostat setting in the home as the car nears or that will alert the driver of an emergency situation at the home. And like other Ford labs around the world, the Palo Alto center is also researching autonomous cars.

Keeping an eye on the future may be a good idea, as Ford’s current circumstances are less than glowing. Sales in China, the world’s largest car market, and one that Ford, like many manufacturers, has been looking to for future growth, were not inspiring in May. And even struggling Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (NYSE: FCAU) outsold Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) and General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) in the European Union in May.

[nativounit]

Sales of Ford’s F-150 continue to be a bright spot for the company, as the pickup has been a bestseller for years. However, Bloomberg points out that even after the popular truck was overhauled with an aluminum body and smaller but supercharged engine, it still does not meet federal emission and fuel-economy mandates, which will only continue to grow more stringent in the years ahead.

Ford investors don’t seem too thrilled these days either. Though the stock is up more than 12% from the 52-week low back in February, it is still down more than 13% in the past year and more than 22% in the past two years. The stock has also been one of the most shorted on the New York Stock Exchange of late. The number of shares sold short increased about 2% in the most recent settlement period to more than 147.02 million, or nearly 4% of the total float.

Ford’s U.S. sales decreased 6% in May, despite the ongoing popularity of its pickups and sport utility vehicles, boosted by still low fuel prices. While gazing into the future may be a good thing for the company in the long term, keeping an eye on how to lift sales in the short-term is what it will take to excite both drivers and investors now.

[wallst_email_signup]

About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.