Ford's (NYSE: F) shares were lower following the company's Q4 results which missed the top and bottom-line. Additionally, the company's outlook for next year came in below expectations.
Other than Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), Ford has probably been one of the best performers automakers in the past year due to its aggressive transition to EVs and rave reviews for its electric F150 and Mustang. It's also looking like Ford will be the first to bring an electric pickup truck to the market, beating out Rivian (Nasdaq: RIVN) and Tesla.
Inside the Numbers
In Q4, Ford reported $0.26 in adjusted earnings per share which fell short of analysts' expectations of $0.45 per share. Revenue also missed at $35.3 billion vs $35.5 billion expected.
The main factor in the earnings and revenue miss was the company missing its production targets due to supply chain issues with the major factor being an ongoing shortage of semiconductor chips.
North American operating income increased 68% to reach $1.8 billion. International losses saw a big decline with a $159 million operating profit which was significantly less than last year.
In terms of unadjusted earnings, Ford has a massive $12.3 billion profit. However, this was largely due to its big stake in Rivian (Nasdaq: RIVN) which went public at a higher than expected value. Without Rivian, Ford's profit was closer to $2 billion. Currently, Ford owns about 12% of Rivian.
In 2022, Ford expects to earn between $11.5 billion and $12.5 billion in pre-tax profits which is a between 15% and 25% increase from 2021. It also forecasts between $5.5 billion and $6.5 billion in adjusted free cash flow.
One factor in this projection is Ford's confidence that the chip shortage is already getting better and should improve over the year. The company also has aggressive CAPEX plans as it expects to spend between $7 billion and $8 billion in 2022 to accelerate its transition to EVs.
After increasing by roughly 140% in 2021, shares of Ford are down by about 4% this year. Ford shares are down about 35% from their recent high in early January, when the stock seemed to be on the verge of a massive breakout. Despite its earnings miss, investors may want to consider buying the dip given that auto production looks like it could return to full capacity by the beginning of next year, and it's one of the best positioned to capture market share in the EV market.