Rathbones Group PLC Acquires 5,946 Shares of Ford Motor (NYSE:F)

Rathbones Group PLC grew its stake in Ford Motor (NYSE:F) by 18.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,427 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 5,946 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Ford Motor were worth $371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of F. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ford Motor by 29.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,464,980 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock worth $15,998,000 after purchasing an additional 336,720 shares during the period. NCP Inc. increased its position in Ford Motor by 62.0% during the 4th quarter. NCP Inc. now owns 74,520 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $738,000 after purchasing an additional 28,528 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Ford Motor by 3.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,394,681 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $46,408,000 after buying an additional 160,409 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Ford Motor by 87.1% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 196,100 shares of the auto manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,941,000 after purchasing an additional 91,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp bought a new position in shares of Ford Motor during the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,853,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.74% of the company’s stock.

Ford Motor Trading Up 8.9 %

Shares of Ford Motor stock opened at $9.47 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.41. Ford Motor has a 52-week low of $8.44 and a 52-week high of $14.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The auto manufacturer reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.04. Ford Motor had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 3.18%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ford Motor will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

Ford Motor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.34%. Ford Motor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on F shares. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Ford Motor from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $9.40 to $7.00 in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ford Motor from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. BNP Paribas upgraded Ford Motor to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Ford Motor from $13.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Ford Motor from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ford Motor currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.10.

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.