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Then -CEO Jim Hackett at a Ford plant in Michigan in May.
AFP via Getty Images
Ford Motor Co. late Wednesday reported third-quarter results that were above Wall Street expectations, including profit that rose by $2 billion, and its stock rallied in after-hours trading.
Ford F, -2.77% said it earned $2.4 billion, or 60 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with $400 million, or 11 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.
Adjusted for one-time items, the auto maker earned 65 cents a share, compared with 34 cents a share a year ago.
Revenue rose to $37.5 billion from $37 billion a year ago.
Analysts polled by FactSet had expected adjusted earnings of 20 cents a share on sales of $35.73 billion.
After closing down 2.5%, Ford shares surged more than 5% after hours.
It was Ford’s first quarterly results under Chief Executive Jim Farley, who became the company’s top executive on Oct. 1.
“We haven’t suddenly fixed the issues in our automotive business, but we have a clear turnaround plan to get that done,” Farley said in a statement. “That work is underway and we’re making progress.”
Former CEO Jim Hackett announced its retirement in August after leading Ford since May 2017.
Under Hackett, Ford took one of the biggest bets in its history when less than a year into his tenure the company announced it was all but bailing out on sedans in the North American market, dropping such cars as the Fiesta and the Taurus, to focus almost exclusive on SUVs, pickups and iconic cars such as the Mustang.
The move, controversial at the time, appears to have paid off. Ford earlier this month said it had its best third quarter of pickup sales since 2005. The company reported third-quarter sales that were down 4.9%, with retail unit sales down 2%.
Shares of Ford have lost about 17% this year, contrasting with gains around 2% for the S&P 500 index SPX, -3.52% and compared with losses of more than 6% for the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -3.43%.
