Ford Misses Q1 Views

reported weaker-than-expected results for the first quarter on Tuesday. For the full year, Ford maintained its pretax profit forecast of $8.5 billion to $9.5 billion. The company now expects North American operating margin of 8.5 percent to 9.5 percent, versus earlier outlook of 8 percent to 9 percent. The Dearborn, Michigan-based company posted quarterly net income of $924 million, or $0.23 per share, versus $989 million or $0.24 per share, in the year-ago period. Its revenue slipped 5 percent to $33.9 billion.. However, analysts were expecting a profit of $0.26 per share on revenue of $34 billion. North American pretax profit slipped 11 percent to $1.3 billion in the quarter, while pretax profit declined to $103 million in Asia-Pacific. In South America, Ford's pretax loss came in at $189 million in the quarter, compared to a loss of $510 million a year earlier. Ford posted a pretax operating loss of $185 million, versus a year-ago loss of $194 million. The average estimate among 82 Estimize users was for earnings of $0.28 per share and revenue of $34.54 billion. "The first quarter was a good start to a year in which our results will grow progressively stronger as the new products we have been launching start to pay off. We are re-confirming that 2015 will be a breakthrough year for Ford as we continue accelerating our One Ford plan, delivering product excellence and driving innovation in every part of the business in a way that benefits all of our stakeholders," Mark Fields, Ford President and CEO said. Ford shares fell 0.69 percent to $15.79 in pre-market trading.