Ford shares rise as strong results outweigh lower expectations

Investors were so impressed by Ford Motor Co.’s third-quarter results that they ignored the guidance cut.

Shares of Ford (F) rose more than 10% to outperform the S&P 500 in recent trading after the “Big Three” automaker reported adjusted earnings of $0.45 per share on revenue that rose 9% year over year to $50.53 billion. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha were expecting $0.34 billion and $46.33 billion, respectively.

However, Ford said it expects “full-year adjusted EBIT headwinds of $1.5 billion to $2 billion and adjusted free cash flow of approximately $2 billion to $3 billion in the fourth quarter due to the Novelis fire,” which led to the closure of an aluminum supplier’s plant in Oswego, New York.

Due to the fire, Ford lowered its 2025 adjusted EBIT forecast to a range of $6 billion to $6.5 billion from $6.5 billion to $7.5 billion, and revised free cash flow from $2 billion to $3 billion from the previous $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion.

“We are working extensively with Novelis and others to obtain aluminum that can be processed in the cold rolling section of the plant that is still in operation while also working to restore overall plant production,” said Jim Farley, Ford CEO. “We have made significant progress in a short time to reduce the impact in 2025 and restore production in 2026.”

With Friday’s gains, Ford shares are up nearly 40% since the beginning of the year.