Ford’s decision to cut sedans from its lineup is in the best interest of its shareholders, despite strong criticism at the annual meeting on Thursday.
“We’ve been listening to our customers and watching shifts in the marketplace,” Ford said in response to a question from a shareholder about the pivot away from sedans. “We’re placing bets where we believe we can get you, the shareholders, very good returns.”
Ford announced last month announced last month that it was giving the ax to its North American passenger car lineup by more than 80 percent, eliminating the Taurus, Fiesta, Fusion, C-Max and Focus sedans. It is reported that utility vehicles are more lucrative to the Ford Motor Company in the United States versus the conventional vehicles, such as sedans and hatchbacks. Pickup trucks are also a priority, with the 2019 Ranger scheduled to arrive at dealers in the second part of the year.
Bill Ford said the new models will be more efficient than those they replace in response to criticism from environmental groups over a shift in the company’s lineup to SUVs,
“Already some of the SUVs are more efficient than their counterparts on the car side,” he said, noting that helps the company reduce greenhouse gas emissions and deal with volatility in oil markets.
According to Reuters, Ford’s plan is to keep the popular Mustang and a new compact crossover called Focus Active starting in 2019.
“We don’t want anyone to think we’re leaving anything,” Hackett said. “We’re just moving to a modern version. This is an exciting new generation of vehicles coming from Ford.”
Ford has also been busy investing in building more electric vehicles and automated driving systems, much like its competition. It is also investing in a network that can be used as the platform for transportation services.
Ford’s stock price rose 0.4 percent to $11.10 as Thursday morning, but overall the stock is down 11 percent this year.
“I share your frustration and actually the whole management team does,” Bill Ford said in response to a shareholder question on Ford’s “ridiculously low” stock price. “That’s really why Jim kicked off the whole fitness effort. Because we need to get our base business back into fighting shape.”
