Ford Q3 US Sales Decline 6.6%, Automaker Reaffirms Full-Year Profit Guidance

Ford Motor (NYSE: F) reported a 6.6% year-over-year decline in its third-quarter U.S. vehicle sales, but said the financial impact from a recent F-150 production issue is contained within its existing full-year profit guidance.

Q3 Sales Performance

The automaker sold 509,764 vehicles in the third quarter, down from the same period a year earlier. However, Ford noted that when excluding the planned phase-out of its Escape and Corsair models, sales volume was essentially flat. This performance compares favorably to an estimated 1% decline for the overall U.S. auto industry during the quarter.

Despite the overall decline, the company estimated its U.S. retail market share grew by approximately 0.4 percentage points to 12.1%.

F-150 Disruption and Guidance

Ford addressed a short-term supplier issue that impacted production of its crucial F-150 pickup truck at the end of September. The company confirmed the problem was not related to aluminum supply.

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Crucially for investors, Ford stated that the expected financial impact from the disruption remains within its full-year 2026 adjusted EBIT guidance of $10 billion to $11 billion, which it first provided on July 28. This signals that the production hiccup is not expected to derail its annual profit targets.

Pockets of Strength

Demand for Ford's high-margin trucks and popular niche vehicles remained a key source of strength, offsetting weakness elsewhere in the portfolio.

• F-Series Trucks: Sales of the F-Series line rose 2.4% in September. Year-to-date sales of 561,508 trucks put the model more than 140,000 units ahead of its main rival, the Chevrolet Silverado.
• Record-Setting Models: The Maverick Hybrid posted a record quarter with sales jumping 59.6% to 27,793 units, while Bronco sales also hit a quarterly record of 38,020 vehicles.
• Off-Road Segment: Ford's off-road lineup, which includes Bronco, Raptor, and Tremor models, accounted for 24% of sales through September, a 3.8 percentage point increase from the prior year.
• Software Subscriptions: The company also reported that its active paid software subscriptions have surpassed 1.7 million, an increase of over 40% from a year ago.