It’s hard for Ford Motor Company (F -0.85%) to escape the cutthroat nature of the mass market car industry. Plus, changing macroeconomic conditions can make things difficult. It seems that consumer confidence, interest rates, and gas prices have worked against the business at times. This helps explain why, over the past four years, the share price has fallen 12% (as of Aug. 17).
But Ford has benefited from heightened investor interest recently. The automotive stock has climbed 23% in the past 12 months. Investors are bullish on Ford Energy, a new segment announced in May that plans to sell battery systems to various customers, capitalizing on the surge in demand for grid storage.
Maybe the winning performance will continue for investors. Or perhaps this company will keep lagging the overall market, as it has historically.
Can Ford stock reach $30, up 114% from its current price of about $14, by 2030?
Image source: The Motley Fool.
Ford spends a lot of money to not grow much
Investors shouldn’t mistake Ford’s longevity, having been in operation for well over a century, as a sign that this is a high-quality company. The Oracle of Omaha’s thinking shapes this perspective.
Warren Buffett, who many consider the greatest capital allocator ever, is known for favoring so-called compounders. These businesses have ample opportunities to reinvest capital in growth initiatives. And they do so because they can generate high returns on invested capital. This is part of the recipe that supports long-term shareholder returns.
Ford doesn’t belong in this category. The company has to spend meaningful sums just to stay in place. During the 10-year period from the start of 2015 through 2025, Ford’s capital expenditures totaled $81 billion. Its automotive revenue increased by only 23.8%, or $33 billion, over that time.
This view is further supported by Ford’s push into electric vehicles (EVs). To be fair, the business did launch popular models such as the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning. However, it undoubtedly overextended itself, investing in a completely new product line just to keep pace with moves made by legacy and upstart peers who were convinced that the industry was rapidly transitioning away from gas-powered vehicles to battery-powered ones. But this shift is taking longer than Ford’s capital outlays suggested.
Ford’s Model e segment posted a cumulative operating loss of $9.9 billion in 2024 and 2025. And in December 2025, the company announced a $19.5 billion write-off to reset its EV strategy. “The operating reality has changed, and we are redeploying capital into higher-return growth opportunities,” CEO Jim Farley said. This was a costly mistake.
An unfavorable operating model like this drastically reduces the probability that the stock will reach $30 in four years.
Today’s Change
(-0.85%) $-0.12
Current Price
$13.93
Key Data Points
Market Cap
Day’s Range
$13.86 – $14.05
52wk Range
$11.11 – $17.78
Volume
18.7K
Avg Vol
56.9M
Gross Margin
8.00%
Dividend Yield
4.31%
Investors can’t bank on the energy segment and cheap valuation being notable catalysts
As mentioned, Ford announced a new energy segment to capture robust demand for grid storage solutions, mainly driven by the data center boom. This looks like a wise move. Management is leaning on Ford’s EV-related assets and capacity to take advantage of market trends to boost sales and profits.
However, investors should temper their expectations. This new division isn’t going to contribute significantly to the company’s financial performance.
According to Morgan Stanley, Ford Energy will generate $500 million to $600 million in annual earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) at scale. The high end of that forecast equates to just 5.7% of the company’s overall 2026 guidance for adjusted EBIT.
Ford bulls will highlight the stock’s cheap valuation. Shares trade at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 8. In theory, this introduces upside, as upbeat financial results could move the stock higher. Ford is a subpar business, though, which means it should trade at a low multiple.
Ford shares have been on a hot streak in the past 12 months. This sort of thing can always happen in the stock market, as sentiment constantly shifts over short-term periods.
But the long-term trend is undeniable. Shares have lagged the S&P 500 index by a considerable margin over the past 30 years. This should guide a bearish view among investors. I’d bet that Ford won’t reach $30 by 2030.