Ford CEO Jim Farley takes off his mask at the Ford Built for America event at Fords Dearborn Truck Plant on September 17, 2020 in Dearborn, Michigan.
Nic Antaya | Getty Images
DETROIT – Shares of Ford Motor hit a new 52-week high for the third day in a row Thursday, pushing the stock at a pace for the best week since June at least.
The stock is up about 20% this week, including an increase of as much as 11.9% during intraday trading on Thursday morning. Shares reached as high as $ 12.15 on Thursday – the highest price from the stock since June 2018. They were trading up about 8% as they were early Thursday afternoon.
The rise follows positive comments from Deutsche Bank and Barclays about Ford’s product plans and a fourth-quarter earnings report on Feb. 4, sparking optimism about its direction for 2021. The automaker earlier in the year This month praised for its Mustang Mach- all-electric E crossover after Ford allowed several analysts to test the vehicle.
Deutsche made a short-term buy of a catalyst call on shares of Ford on Wednesday and said it was bullish on an upcoming earnings report and future production plans, including the Bronco SUV. The company maintained its long-term holding rate on the stock.
“We will see potential catalysts in the coming months, including a tough 2021 forecast of its 4Q employment call (2/4), the launch of a number of key models under the executive leadership team its new Capital Markets Day in the spring where Ford could redesign its redesign program and showcase a new EV strategy, “Deutsche ‘s Emmanuel Rosner wrote in an investment note.
Ford is launching Bronco 2021 with over 200 factory-backed aftermarket accessories for increased capacity and personalization.
Source: Ford
Barclays on Thursday continued to reaffirm that it is still above consensus for Ford on the basis of a $ 11 billion ongoing restructuring and Ford production output. The automaker announced last week that it would end production in Brazil at an expected cost of $ 4.1 billion in pretax costs as part of the restructuring.
However, Barclays said it is still more bullish on Ford ‘s crosstown competitor, General Motors, because it is targeting electric vehicles. GM’s plan includes launching 30 new EVs by 2025 under a $ 27 billion investment in electric and autonomous vehicles. Ford has said it is investing more than $ 11.5 billion in electric vehicles, including all-electric and plug-in hybrid models, through 2022.