Ford Motor Credit Reports Q1 2014 Profit Of $312 Million

Ford Motor Credit Company, The Blue Oval’s captive finance arm, has reported net income of $312 million for the first quarter of 2014. The results compare with $364 million for the previous year. Pre-tax profit for Q1 2014 was down slightly to $499 million, versus $507 million in Q1 of 2013.

According to Ford, the change was driven by higher volume, which is reflected in increases in nearly all products globally, but was largely offset by unfavorable lease residual performance in North America.

“We continue to deliver on the core elements of our Ford support strategy – outstanding products and services, a strong and growing balance sheet and consistent profitability,” said Bernard Silverstone, chairman and chief executive officer, Ford Motor Credit Company.

Current Factors

On March 31, 2014, Ford Credit’s total net receivables were $103 billion, compared with $100 billion at year-end 2013. Managed receivables were $106 billion on March 31, 2014, up from $103 billion on December 31, 2013. On March 31, 2014, managed leverage was 8.6:1, compared with 8.5:1 on December 31, 2013.

Guidance

In a press release, Ford Credit stated that it expects full-year pre-tax profit to be about equal to or higher than 2013 thanks to improved financing margin performance. The finance arm continues to expect managed receivables at year-end of about $110 billion, managed leverage to continue in the range of 8:1 to 9:1, and distributions to its parent of about $250 million.

Risk Factors

Ford Credit also notes the following (verbatim):

Statements included or incorporated by reference herein may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on expectations, forecasts, and assumptions by our management and involve a number of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those stated, including, without limitation:

• Decline in industry sales volume, particularly in the United States or Europe, due to financial crisis, recession, geopolitical events, or other factors;
• Decline in Ford’s market share or failure to achieve growth;
• Lower-than-anticipated market acceptance of Ford’s new or existing products;
• Market shift away from sales of larger, more profitable vehicles beyond Ford’s current planning assumption, particularly in the United States;
• An increase in or continued volatility of fuel prices, or reduced availability of fuel;
• Continued or increased price competition resulting from industry excess capacity, currency fluctuations, or other factors;
• Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, commodity prices, and interest rates;
• Adverse effects resulting from economic, geopolitical, or other events;
• Economic distress of suppliers that may require Ford to provide substantial financial support or take other measures to ensure supplies of components or materials and could increase costs, affect liquidity, or cause production constraints or disruptions;
• Work stoppages at Ford or supplier facilities or other limitations on production (whether as a result of labor disputes, natural or man-made disasters, tight credit markets or other financial distress, production constraints or difficulties, or other factors);
• Single-source supply of components or materials;
• Labor or other constraints on Ford’s ability to maintain competitive cost structure;
• Substantial pension and postretirement health care and life insurance liabilities impairing our liquidity or financial condition;
• Worse-than-assumed economic and demographic experience for postretirement benefit plans (e.g., discount rates or investment returns);
• Restriction on use of tax attributes from tax law “ownership change;”
• The discovery of defects in vehicles resulting in delays in new model launches, recall campaigns, or increased warranty costs;
• Increased safety, emissions, fuel economy, or other regulations resulting in higher costs, cash expenditures, and/or sales restrictions;
• Unusual or significant litigation, governmental investigations, or adverse publicity arising out of alleged defects in products, perceived environmental impacts, or otherwise;
• A change in requirements under long-term supply arrangements committing Ford to purchase minimum or fixed quantities of certain parts, or to pay a minimum amount to the seller (“take-or-pay” contracts);
• Adverse effects on results from a decrease in or cessation or clawback of government incentives related to investments;
• Inherent limitations of internal controls impacting financial statements and safeguarding of assets;
• Cybersecurity risks to operational systems, security systems, or infrastructure owned by Ford, Ford Credit, or a third-party vendor or supplier;
• Failure of financial institutions to fulfill commitments under committed credit and liquidity facilities;
• Inability of Ford Credit to access debt, securitization, or derivative markets around the world at competitive rates or in sufficient amounts, due to credit rating downgrades, market volatility, market disruption, regulatory requirements, or other factors;
• Higher-than-expected credit losses, lower-than-anticipated residual values, or higher-than-expected return volumes for leased vehicles;
• Increased competition from banks or other financial institutions seeking to increase their share of financing Ford vehicles; and
• New or increased credit, consumer, or data protection or other regulations resulting in higher costs and/or additional financing restrictions.