Legacy automaker Ford (F) has been bringing out quite a few new patents of late. While there is only so much chance that any of these will ever see the light of day, there is a potential win afoot somewhere in the mass of patents. Its latest patent, meanwhile, focuses on electric vehicles and their batteries. The news was welcome for Ford investors, who sent shares up nearly 2% in Wednesday afternoon’s trading.
The latest patent, which Road & Track noted was under US 12115880 B2, was filed all the way back in November 2021 and just published yesterday, October 15. The patent in question deals with “battery electric vehicle monitoring systems and methods for track usage and off-roading.” That by itself is raising some attention.
Trying to use electric vehicles for specialty applications like off-roading has been a comparatively difficult concept. This is mostly due to the charging network, which has not exactly been all it could be. But with Ford’s patent, users will be better able to tell just how much longer they have at the race track or off-roading before they need to come in for a charge. Or before they need to reach a charger, whichever turns out to be the case.
Hitting the Nurburgring
And of course, Ford’s gas-powered vehicles are also making some headlines, as a new report from Car & Driver pointed out. Ford recently released a teaser video about its Mustang GTD, a highly-potent 815 horsepower V8 vehicle that will deliver a lot of the performance you might ordinarily expect out of a race car.
As such, it took to the Nurburgring, one of the biggest race tracks in Germany, to see what kind of lap time it could generate. The official time will be made available in the next few weeks, the report noted, but suffice it to say that Ford has been gunning for a time of under seven minutes. With the teaser in place, Ford must have something to show. After all, why engage in marketing, like a teaser, when you have nothing to sell?
Is Ford Stock a Good Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on F stock based on five Buys, nine Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 1.65% loss in its share price over the past year, the average F price target of $12.68 per share implies 15.12% upside potential.
