New York, Feb 13, 2026, 18:14 EST — After-hours
- Ford picked up 0.7% after hours, with shares changing hands at $14.12.
- Tariffs, cost-cutting promises, and evidence that American buyers are opting for basic trims—all of it is under investor scrutiny right now.
- With U.S. markets shut Monday, attention pivots to Tuesday’s opening bell and Ford’s upcoming earnings report.
Ford Motor picked up 0.7% to close at $14.12 in after-hours action on Friday. The stock traded between $13.83 and $14.33 through the session, with roughly 87 million shares changing hands.
It’s a small shift, but the underlying tensions are real. Investors want to know just how much margin Ford can actually hang onto with customers opting for lower-priced trims and policy costs refusing to budge.
According to a Reuters report out Thursday, average new-car transaction prices have stuck near the $50,000 mark for almost a year—prompting a shift among some buyers to entry-level trims. Ford reported a drop in overall U.S. sales in January, but sales of its base Maverick pickup actually jumped 33.5%. “The bare minimum of options” is what many buyers are after now, said Sam Fiorani, AutoForecast Solutions vice president. David Whiston, auto analyst at Morningstar, pointed out that affordability worries are steering automakers like Honda and General Motors to focus more on less expensive models. 1
Speaking Thursday at the BMO Auto Finance Forum, Ford stood by its full-year revenue projection of $187.3 billion and reported $1.5 billion in cost savings before tariffs. The company finished 2025 holding close to $29 billion in cash and roughly $50 billion in total liquidity. Adjusted EBIT came to $6.8 billion, while adjusted free cash flow reached $3.5 billion after capital spending. 2
Ford now expects adjusted EBIT between $8 billion and $10 billion for 2026, alongside adjusted free cash flow in the $5 billion to $6 billion range. Capital spending is pegged at $9.5 billion to $10.5 billion. CEO Jim Farley described the moves as “difficult but critical” for the company’s strategy, while CFO Sherry House highlighted a focus on capital discipline. Ford has scheduled its first-quarter results for release after markets close on April 28. 3
Ford earlier this week flagged a $2 billion hit for the year from President Donald Trump’s tariffs, blaming most of it on aluminum costs for the F-150. The company also pointed to a fire at an aluminum supplier near Oswego, New York; that plant won’t be back to full output until sometime between May and September. CFO Sherry House said late last year’s revised tariff-relief guidance tacked on around $900 million in extra costs. “I do believe this is the right allocation of capital,” CEO Jim Farley told analysts, stressing Ford’s focus on partnerships and rolling out a cheaper EV pickup platform. Ford is expecting its EV and software arm to lose another $4 billion to $4.5 billion this year. General Motors and Stellantis have raised similar alarms on hefty EV-related charges. 4
Analysts are split. Morgan Stanley flagged that Ford’s 2026 EBIT target came in shy of its own projection, citing tariffs and supplier costs as factors. Barclays’ Dan Levy, on the other hand, thought the guidance “largely cleared the bar” but noted investors still want more specifics. 5
The flip side isn’t hard to imagine. Moving buyers toward lower-cost trims might boost vehicle counts, but each sale brings in less profit. Plus, changes in tariff policy or fresh supply hiccups would hit Ford’s top-earning trucks first.
U.S. stock markets remain shut Monday for Presidents Day; trading resumes Tuesday. 6
After Tuesday’s open, traders are still hunting for indications the affordability crunch might be widening. Any new tariff news that could hit the sector’s pricing remains on the radar. Ford’s next big test? Its Q1 earnings, slated for April 28. 7
