April Ford Sales Miss

Ford‘s (F) sales were up 4% last month but that was below expectations.

The automaker recorded 3% growth for its namesake Ford brand and 20% growth for the Lincoln luxury brand. Overall the company sold 231,316 vehicles.

The average Ford discount per vehicle rose by 24% in April, compared to a year earlier, to $3,423, according to TrueCar. That was the industry’s second-highest increase and outpaced the industry average of 13% growth to an average of $3,021.

On a positive note, though, average transaction prices rose $1,500 over a year ago, according to Ford.

“We saw strong consumer demand in April, especially for pickups,” said Mark LaNeve, Ford vice president of U.S. marketing, sales and service, in a statement. “F-Series has moved past the quarter million sales mark year to date – the strongest start for F-Series in a decade, while Ford brand SUVs are having their best year ever.”

I think the takeaway is that shoppers are out there but they’re looking for bargains. Ford’s Q1 earnings were very strong. The stock is down about 1.3% today.

Posted by on May 3rd, 2016 at 3:01 pm


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