Ford Motor Co. reversed a loss and rode some big accounting changes to post a $17.94 billion net profit last year, even as it battled computer chip shortages that caused factory slowdowns and vehicle shortages.
U.S. sales for the Dearborn, Michigan, automaker fell 7% for the year over depressed 2020 numbers. But customers paid record prices of nearly $51,000 per vehicle in Ford’s most lucrative market, according to Edmunds.com.
Excluding the one-time items, the company made $1.59 per share, falling short of analyst estimates of $1.86, according to FactSet. Revenue rose 7.2% to $136.34 billion. That was short of analyst estimates of $137.61 billion.
Ford’s net income reversed a loss of $1.28 billion last year as it also dealt with a huge restructuring, a costly recall and a decline in the value of its pension fund.
For the fourth quarter, Ford made $12.28 billion, or 26 cents per share excluding one-time items. That was short of Wall Street estimates of 45 cents per share.
Ford’s stock fell about 3% in after-hours trading following the results announcement.