Cars and Drivers

Ford Short Interest Jumps by 13 Million

Wikimedia Commons

Bets against Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) jumped by 13.3 million shares in the period that ended August 15. Year to date, its stock is off 12.7%, while the S&P 500 is up 6.5%. Total Ford shares sold short are now 161.3 million.

Ford shares several things with other large car companies. The first is there is a widely held belief that U.S. car sales have peaked. And car sales in China have slowed in many recent months. Ford’s share of the EU market is small. Its July U.S. sales dropped 3% to 215,268 cars and light trucks. Wall Street has pounded the stock.

In its most recently reported quarter:

Net income $2.0B, down $190M from a year ago; Total company adjusted pre-tax profit of $3.0B, down $293M

Earnings per share $0.49, down $0.05 from a year ago; adjusted earnings per share $0.52, down $0.02

The company also issued a large recall recently. According to Reuters:

Ford Motor Co said on Wednesday (August 24) it was recalling about 91,000 vehicles worldwide to replace faulty fuel-pump parts that could potentially cause a car to stall without warning.

Ford said it would replace fuel-pump control modules in about 88,151 vehicles, including certain of its 2013-15 model year Ford Taurus sedans, Ford Flex crossover utility vehicles, Lincoln MKS sedans, Lincoln MKT SUVs and Ford Police Interceptor sedans.

While recalls are at or near record levels, Ford investors cannot be happy.

Credit Card Companies Are Doing Something Nuts

Credit card companies are at war. The biggest issuers are handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers.

It’s possible to find cards paying unlimited 1.5%, 2%, and even more today. That’s free money for qualified borrowers, and the type of thing that would be crazy to pass up. Those rewards can add up to thousands of dollars every year in free money, and include other benefits as well.

We’ve assembled some of the best credit cards for users today.  Don’t miss these offers because they won’t be this good forever.

Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.