Of all the things a car from legacy automaker Ford (F) can do, “translating conversations” was probably not on most people’s lists. Get out your pencils and erasers, though, because you will need to add this to the list, at least, if a report from Ford Authority comes to pass. The move left Ford shares relatively flat, however, down fractionally in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
Stay Ahead of the Market:
- Discover outperforming stocks and invest smarter with Top Smart Score Stocks
- Filter, analyze, and streamline your search for investment opportunities using Tipranks' Stock Screener
The report emerged just recently as Ford filed another unexpected patent, which was approved, for a “vehicle interface control system” to be potentially used in future Ford vehicles. The patent was originally filed almost a year and a half ago, June 9, 2023. But it was published earlier today.
Essentially, it calls for an interface that can hear what is said in one language and then translate that to another language. It can also announce the translation in the desired language or present the output on a secondary monitor. This basically works the same way that Google Translate and other such mobile systems do, but it is built right into a car.
The Return of the Ford Escort…Sort Of
While Ford itself has largely left the sedan market behind in favor of SUVs and trucks, there are some signs of life in this sector thanks to Boreham Motorworks, noted a report from Top Gear. The new project in question is an Mk1 Ford Escort RS, and it looks closer to a muscle car than a daily driver.
Ford has officially licensed the Boreham Motorworks Mk1 Ford Escort RS, which is dubbed a “continumod” that has “continuation chassis numbers.” The end result is surprisingly impressive, even by Top Gear standards, who already declared that it “looks and sounds amazing.” It also boasts an option for an unusual engine: a 2.1-liter nat-asp four-cylinder with double overhead cams that is “motorsport-derived.” It revs to 10,000 RPM and produces 296 bhp, so clearly, this is much more a performance vehicle than the Ford Escort had any right to be.
Is Ford Stock a Good Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on F stock based on four Buys, eight Holds, and two Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 0.86% loss in its share price over the past year, the average F price target of $11.04 per share implies 5.6% upside potential.
