Blue Oval Guide Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 Ford's Rebound: Something To Believe In Or Not? In one week Ford has gone from being perceived as an automaker struggling to jump start its business, to a company and stock worth betting on. My how things can change in just a few days. So it's time to ask yourself: Do you believe Ford Ford Motor Co wil come back? The case for it received a big vote of confidence from Tracinda Corp., the investment firm representing billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian. Kerkorian's chief representative when it comes to sizing up auto investments, Jerry York, says Ford is conducting a stealth turnaround. He's right. Ford's progress hasn't received the kind of attention you would expect after beating street estimates and posting a couple of surprise profits 5 out of the last 6 quarters. But Kerkorian's investment plus a profitable first quarter finally has investor's saying, "Hmmm, maybe this turnaround at Ford is different." After two failed re-organizations under former CEO, and current chairman, Bill Ford Jr., is it possible Alan Mulally has finally got the automaker back on track? READ MORE HERE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 Drrr. Any individual who changes his opinion of a company based on whether someone else is loudly trumpeting their share purchases is an individual who should stick to CDs and money markets. Furthermore, the guy writing this article knows about as much about Ford Motor as the younger of my two cats. Maybe less. As far as Mulally getting the 'easy part' taken care of, the guy obviously has no clue what was involved in rectifying Ford's quality, in rectifying Ford's market research efforts, etc. And finally, they guy overlooks the bane of trolls and the surprise of the season: the new Ford Focus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstock Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 From my view, Ford's ultimate success will come by getting buyers back in showrooms and making Ford models winners across the board. And on that front, I think Ford still has work to do. If that changes, then this stealth turnaround will really start to make noise. The process is well underway. But in a sound-byte ADD world, the concept that this takes time is beyond the comprehension of most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-150 Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 Drrr. Any individual who changes his opinion of a company based on whether someone else is loudly trumpeting their share purchases is an individual who should stick to CDs and money markets. Furthermore, the guy writing this article knows about as much about Ford Motor as the younger of my two cats. Maybe less. As far as Mulally getting the 'easy part' taken care of, the guy obviously has no clue what was involved in rectifying Ford's quality, in rectifying Ford's market research efforts, etc. And finally, they guy overlooks the bane of trolls and the surprise of the season: the new Ford Focus. Wow. I really want to meet the elder of the 2 cats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray101988 Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 Wow. I really want to meet the elder of the 2 cats ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drake Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 I've never seen the animal but I bet Richard's cat could probably write a better unbiased article than anyone in the mainstream media these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 Heck, who do you think types half the stuff that gets posted under my account? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 So he's the one that uses "Ergo" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 (edited) So he's the one that uses "Ergo" She, actually, and she says that's because 'ergo' is much easier to type than 'therefore' when your whole hand is about the size of one keyboard key. Very good at using a smart phone, though.... Edited May 1, 2008 by RichardJensen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 She, actually, and she says that's because 'ergo' is much easier to type than 'therefore' when your whole hand is about the size of one keyboard key. Very good at using a smart phone, though.... Like the line off the Simpsons, something like: "If your fingers are to fat to type the numbers, mash the key pad after the tone" My red beast often walks across the key pad, like now.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JETSOLVER Posted May 1, 2008 Share Posted May 1, 2008 Hmm. Seems that either the PRopaganda dept is now staffed, or perception is the rule. Globe and Mail/on perception of a turnaround "Marginal profitability on nearly $40-billion in revenue is encouraging, but it's hardly proof of a miraculous turnaround. Ford is still a long way from the glory days, when Dearborn was an admired global centre of car-making prowess." Sounds like something has caught the media's attention. Just wish it wasn't a raider, one who smells blood like a shark... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 At Kerkorian's age, he probably can't even smell his own farts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyle Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Wow. I really want to meet the elder of the 2 cats Now that is good!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah Harbinger Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 At Kerkorian's age, he probably can't even smell his own farts. Way to raise the level of discourse, Moderator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstock Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 At Kerkorian's age, he probably can't even smell his own farts. Well, whoever wrote the Globe and Mail article sure as hell can't: Ford has also strategically pared back the number of vehicles it makes, including shedding the Volvo, Land Rover and Mercury brands. It's moving away from a reliance on gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs, which once accounted for 70 per cent of sales. And it has cut low-margin bulk sales to rental car companies. I guess they still own Jaguar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Well, whoever wrote the Globe and Mail article sure as hell can't: I guess they still own Jaguar. Well, technically, they still own JLR...I dont believe the sale hasn't been completed yet. And obviously they still own Volvo and Mercury, the first of which may be out the door soon, as well as the latter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah Harbinger Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Well, technically, they still own JLR...I dont believe the sale hasn't been completed yet. And obviously they still own Volvo and Mercury, the first of which may be out the door soon, as well as the latter. Prophecy the First: Mercury will never be sold Prophecy the Second: If Mercury is sold, whoever buys it will soon go out of business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7Mary3 Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 People are reading way to much into this Kerkorian deal. He bought Ford because the stock is cheap, and he figures he can make a bunch of noise and get the stock price up enough to make the investment worth his while. He couldn't care less about Ford or Mulally. As soon as he makes a couple of bucks, Kirk will be gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah Harbinger Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 He couldn't care less about Ford or Mulally. As soon as he makes a couple of bucks, Kirk will be gone. Granted, a Ford turnaround will probably be reflected in its stock price within 2-3 years... but given his age... he might not even last that long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted May 6, 2008 Share Posted May 6, 2008 Prophecy the First: Mercury will never be sold Prophecy the Second: If Mercury is sold, whoever buys it will soon go out of business. I doubt Mercury could even feasibly be sold, since it's literally Ford vehicles with different badging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 6, 2008 Share Posted May 6, 2008 Oh the trademark is probably worth something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted May 6, 2008 Share Posted May 6, 2008 Oh the trademark is probably worth something. I'm thinking more along the lines of product lineup, etc. The brand name/trademark, etc. you may be able to sell, but not the product lineup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPManx Posted May 7, 2008 Share Posted May 7, 2008 Oh the trademark is probably worth something. Hmmm...worth more than Oldsmobile? Than Plymouth? DeSoto? Edsel? I seriously doubt that the Mercury name, shorn of any product, has enough value that anyone would want to create a whole new lineup of vehicles to go with it. Best case scenario is that Mercury Marine would buy the name just to get it off the market. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustangman9494 Posted May 7, 2008 Share Posted May 7, 2008 all welll and good but if ford had more small cars on the market they would be that much more ahead of the game. that verve or fiesta would really excite the gas weary public right avbout now!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 7, 2008 Share Posted May 7, 2008 Hmmm...worth more than Oldsmobile? Than Plymouth? DeSoto? Edsel? I seriously doubt that the Mercury name, shorn of any product, has enough value that anyone would want to create a whole new lineup of vehicles to go with it. Best case scenario is that Mercury Marine would buy the name just to get it off the market. GM is still sitting on the Oldsmobile trademark. They've paid, since closing the brand, to keep it registered. Ditto Chrysler with Plymouth. De Soto is dead, but surprisingly, Ford is keeping Edsel alive (although that's mostly because Ford sells Edsel collectibles). Ford would probably avoid selling the trademark, however, as if it were bought by a company that sold exceptionally bad products, people might forget it was no longer affiliated wit Ford. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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