Ford Q1 2023 Financials Improve As ICE, Pro Show Growth

May 3, 2023 9:33 am

Last year was a tough one for the automotive industry as a whole, and that was particularly true for Ford, which “left 2$ billion of profit on the table,” according to CEO Jim Farley in a rather frustrating performance. With warranty and labor costs eating away at The Blue Oval’s margins, big changes are coming in 2023, as the automaker looks to slash $8 billion in costs and make up for its currently unprofitable Model e EV business. However, the company is already seeing some improvement after the first quarter of the year, as essentially every measurable enjoyed some sort of increase in Q1.

For starters, Ford’s revenue in the first quarter of 2023 came in at $41.5 billion, which is 20 percent more year-over-year, while deliveries also increased by nine percent to 1.1 million units – making it the best-selling vehicle brand in Q1. After suffering a net loss in 2022, net income also improved significantly to $1.8 billion, though the automaker credits some of that shift to a change in the mark-to-market value of its investment in Rivian.

As for company adjusted earnings before interest and taxes – or EBIT, as it’s otherwise known – that figure came in at $3.4 billion, which is an increase of 45 percent and a margin of 8.1 percent. Meanwhile, quarterly cash flow from operations was $2.8 billion, while Ford generated $693 million in adjusted free cash flow. At the conclusion of Q1, Ford had nearly $29 billion in cash and over $46 billion in liquidity.

Much of this growth was driven by Ford Blue and Ford Pro – the automaker’s ICE and commercial vehicle divisions, however. The former posted a first-quarter revenue of $25.1 billion, an EBIT of $2.6 billion, and an EBIT margin of 10.4 percent – all increases, year-over-year, while Ford Pro enjoyed an 18 percent growth in wholesales, revenue of $13.2 billion (a 28 percent increase), an EBIT of $1.4 billion, and an EBIT margin of 10.3 percent, all robust improvements that help to make up for Model e’s losses, which are expected to continue until the automaker’s second-gen EVs debut.

We’ll have more on Ford’s financial performance soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for 24/7 Ford news coverage.

By Brett Foote

Brett's lost track of all the Fords he's owned over the years and how much he's spent modifying them, but his current money pits include an S550 Mustang and 13th gen F-150.