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The Ford Motor Company recently released its fourth quarter results and they were definitely not what analysts wanted to hear about. For the fourth quarter, the Ford Motor Company posted around $5.8 billion in losses due to declining sales and ballooning restructuring costs. For the year 2006, Ford posted a total of $12.7 billion in loss, making it the largest loss in its 103 year history. Analysts are definitely expecting Ford to have more significant losses to mount this year and I’m not surprised by that.

I think this is a great time to buy Ford stock since Ford doesn’t really have many things to work with. For the most part, Ford has been dealing with gas guzzling SUV’s and trucks in the hopes that they can reap huge profits. The mistake that Ford made was that it banked on the SUV fad to continue even with rising fuel costs, a mistake shared by GM as well. However, in the past two to three years, Ford has released the Fusion and the Five Hundred, both of which are commendable vehicles and focus on quality. The problem with Ford, I think, has been their reluctance to design and produce vehicles that cater to what the consumer wants. They were so focused on profit margins and production capacity that they completely forgot the consumer and shunned quality.

Ford’s insistence to maintain the money losing Jaguar brand and the sluggish Land Rover product line is also not helping. Although both brands resonate luxury in the minds of millions across the globe, it is important to note that both Jaguar and Land Rover do not command the same respect as Mercedes or Lexus do. Even people with absurd amounts of money are beginning to put more emphasis on quality than a high price tag. What I cannot understand is why Jaguar does not abandon their classy roots and move to appeal a younger audience that is more tech savvy and crazy for uniqueness. The same goes for Land Rover’s luxury Range Rover vehicle. The Range Rover is a proven SUV, but it fails to hold its own in front of Mercedes’ GL class and Lexus’ GX model.

I encourage people to buy Ford stock since Ford does have some tricks up their sleeve. The Fusion has proven to be a worthy alternative to the Camry and Accord and its styling is definitely more provacative than Toyota’s and Honda’s. In addition, Ford is doing the right thing by slimming down their entire infrastructure and moving towards acknowledging the varying demands of its target consumer. In addition, Ford is an iconic American brand that will not simply disappear anytime soon. If anything, Ford’s stock price will soar to new levels in the near future and purchase of its stock will be a long term investment. So if you want some short term gains, purchase Google, but if you’re looking for some solid long term investment, try Ford.

Source: More Ford Woes

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