Global automobile company Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) is considering manufacturing EVs in India for exports as well as sales within the country, a report published by Reuters said.
The Indian government has approved the company’s proposal seeking incentives under its $3.5 billion clean-vehicles program.
Ford said that it was “exploring the possibility of using a plant in India as an export base for EV manufacturing.”
In September, the Michigan-based company stopped making cars in India as it held a less than 2% share of the domestic passenger vehicle market, even after its entry into the country 25 years ago.
Ford has two manufacturing plants in India, which were used to make ICE vehicles.
The company designs, produces and sells cars, trucks, and automobile parts under Ford and Lincoln brands.
At the time of writing, F stock was trading 1.8% down in the pre-market session on Monday.
Wall Street’s Take
Gaurav Vangaal of IHS Markit said, “Ford will have to prove India can also be cost-competitive for making EVs, for which it will need big investments to localize the supply chain.”
The company will also have to figure out how to source lithium-ion batteries, Vangaal added.
Last week, Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) analyst Adam Jonas maintained a Sell rating on the stock but raised the price target to $13 from $12 (26% downside potential).
The analyst said, “Ford was re-rated in 2021 on an EV/connected car strategy that resonated with investors and consumers. We wish investor expectations were better managed for execution risk as the EV plan becomes a reality.”
Overall, the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 8 Buys, 7 Holds and 2 Sells. The average Ford Motor price target of $23.63 implies 34.6% upside potential. Shares have gained 80.4% over the past year.
Website Traffic
TipRanks’ Website Traffic Tool, which uses data from SEMrush Holdings (NYSE: SEMR), the world’s biggest website usage monitoring service, offers insight into Ford’s performance.
According to the tool, compared to the previous year, Ford’s website traffic has registered a 7% decline in global visits year-to-date.
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