(Bloomberg) -- Ford Motor Co. may have been too forthcoming with Wall Street in the past and will guard against tipping its hand on future plans, Executive Chairman Bill Ford said.
“In the past, maybe we said too much,” Bill Ford said Tuesday. “This is a very competitive world we're in. You want to give Wall Street enough information, but you also don't want to telegraph exactly where you're going. And I think that's a balance that we are going to continue to work on.”
Analysts at Barclays Plc and RBC Capital Markets downgraded their ratings on Ford stock days after Chief Executive Officer Jim Hackett's address to investors earlier this month, citing the time it'll take him to turn around the company. Others said the CEO's presentation was lacking details. Only five analysts recommend buying the shares, while 19 tracked by Bloomberg rate them a hold and two advise selling.
“We are trying to provide clarity without being so open that we tip our hand in some areas that we think are very key for competitive advantage,” Bill Ford said after a Detroit Economic Club event. “The key is providing clarity when we're ready so that investors can make an informed decision.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Jamie Butters in Southfield, Michigan, at jbutters@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Trudell at ctrudell1@bloomberg.net, Anne Riley Moffat
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