Automaker Ford (NYSE:F) may have made a fairly smart move today, but investors weren’t taking it that well. It cut off a program that required dealerships that wanted to sell electric vehicles to make a substantial investment in infrastructure. That program is now out the door, and investors sold off Ford stock, sending shares down modestly in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
Known as the “EV-certified” program, dealers who wanted to add electric vehicles to their lots had to drop as much as $1 million to cover investments in charging platforms, training, and other expenses connected to selling electric vehicles. This was done in response to what was at the time—back in 2022—surging demand for electrics.
However, that demand has since boiled off, and now, Ford is opening up the platform to any dealership that wants to sell them. There will still be some investment in charging stations and such, but it’s much more accessible now that we’ve discovered the true extent of demand for electric vehicles right now.
Job Cuts and Mustangs
Ford had plenty else going on as well, as it looked to axe 1,600 jobs from its plant in Valencia, Spain. That plant only had around 4,700 workers to begin with, so that’s roughly one in every three jobs lost therein. However, all is not lost; as many as 1,000 of them could be rehired later, as Ford is looking to boost production at the Valencia plant starting in 2027. That won’t be much help for the employees, sadly, but it is what it is.
Meanwhile, Ford revealed that its Mustang GTD will also come with a performance package option, which includes dive planes, a splitter to the front, and a drag reduction system on the rear, among other things. Given that the GTD recently posted a lap at the Nurburgring at a time under seven minutes, that’s a pretty impressive package.
Is Ford Stock a Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on Ford stock based on seven Buys, five Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 10.33% loss in its share price over the past year, the average F price target of $15.25 per share implies 27.62% upside potential.
