Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Shares Sold by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lowered its position in Ford Motor (NYSE:F) by 14.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,576 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock after selling 8,367 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Ford Motor were worth $617,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ford Motor by 835.9% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 2,059 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,839 shares during the period. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ford Motor in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new stake in shares of Ford Motor during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Provence Wealth Management Group acquired a new position in shares of Ford Motor during the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Headinvest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ford Motor in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.74% of the company’s stock.

Ford Motor Stock Performance

Shares of F opened at $12.50 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $12.65 and a 200-day moving average of $11.81. The company has a market cap of $49.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.17. Ford Motor has a 1 year low of $9.63 and a 1 year high of $15.42.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The auto manufacturer reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.07. Ford Motor had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 17.63%. The firm had revenue of $42.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. Ford Motor’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ford Motor will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Ford Motor Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. Ford Motor’s payout ratio is currently 61.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

F has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Ford Motor in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. They set a “sell” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Ford Motor in a research note on Friday, March 15th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $13.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Ford Motor from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Ford Motor from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Ford Motor from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ford Motor presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Mark Kosman sold 26,898 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.53, for a total value of $337,031.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,988.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Ford Motor

Ford Motor Company develops, delivers, and services a range of Ford trucks, commercial cars and vans, sport utility vehicles, and Lincoln luxury vehicles worldwide. It operates through Ford Blue, Ford Model e, and Ford Pro; Ford Next; and Ford Credit segments. The company sells Ford and Lincoln vehicles, service parts, and accessories through distributors and dealers, as well as through dealerships to commercial fleet customers, daily rental car companies, and governments.