In this articleF your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNTJim Farley, president and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co., at Ford Accelerate in Detroit, Michigan, US, on Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025.
Jeff Kowalsky | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesDETROIT — "A lot of surprises." That's how Ford Motor CEO Jim Farley described his past five years leading the Detroit automaker, which he believes now has a solid foundation.For Farley, who marks his fifth anniversary as CEO on Wednesday, there have been industry-wide blems to deal with, as well as Ford-specific issues that the company is still in the cess of navigating.The 63-year-old CEO has been working to make Ford more capital efficient, imve quality to reduce recall and warranty costs, and grow fit margins.
That's on top of industry-wide concerns changing regulations, including tariffs, and shifting dynamics in electric and autonomous vehicle strategies.
"I think there were certainly a lot of surprises," Farley told CNBC on the sidelines of a Ford event Wednesday in Detroit.
"I would say what I'm most ud of is the team I built, together with [Ford Chair Bill Ford], as well as the foundation."Farley said it's still going to "take more work," but the company has a good base after years of restructuring to perform better than it has under his tenure thus far.
He's optimistic Ford continuing to imve the company's overall performance and grow holder value."We need to get more capital efficient.
We need to have higher margins than 4% or 5%, and we we need to be more resilient to economic cycle," Farley said, adding some recent changes in regulations from the Trump administration may be more beneficial than Wall Street expects for Ford.Investor 'surprise'Despite the company's challenges, Ford stock has been a surprising return for investors that have stuck with the automaker, which remains a "hold" based on average ratings of Wall Street analysts compiled by FactSet.While Ford's stock price hasn't increased as much as General Motors, Tesla or the overall S&P 500 index over the past five years, its total holder return — including a historically strong dividend — has made it a better investment than many of its peers.Stock Chart IconStock chart iconAuto stocks since October 2020Ford's total holder return over the past five years is roughly 134%, according to FactSet.
That tops its largest global competitors other than Tesla – at 211% – over that time period.
GM, Ford's closest rival, has a total return of 113% over that time period — in line with the S&P 500, according to Factset.
U.S.-listed s of Toyota Motor, meanwhile, had a cumulative total return of 61%, while Honda Motor s had a total return of 51%.On a per basis, Ford stock closed Tuesday at $11.96 per , up roughly 80% since Farley became CEO on Oct.
1, 2020.
That compares with Tesla, up 211% to nearly $445; GM increasing 106% to roughly $61; and the overall S&P 500 index with a 99% increase since then.Farley has managed to woo Wall Street more than his two most recent predecessors — both of whom departed the company after double-digit losses in Ford's stock price.Farley became the head of Ford amid more than decade lows in the company's stock price ing the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S.
He took over from CEO Jim Hackett, who was recruited by Chair Bill Ford to replace longtime executive Mark Fields.Ford's stock under Hackett, ex-CEO of furniture maker Steelcase, declined roughly 40% during his tenure from May 2017 through September 2020.
It was slightly better under Fields' roughly three-year tenure, when the stock declined around 35%.The stock's best performance in the past 25 years occurred under CEO Alan Mulally, from September 2006 through July 2014, when s jumped roughly 178%.Ford's stock saw its lowest point under Farley when he took over the company in 2020.
Its high during the past five years was $25.87 per in January 2022, which occurred during the automaker's push into electric vehicles such as the F-150 Lightning and notable upgrades.At that time, Ford's market value topped $100 billion for the first time ever.
It's now less than half that around $48 billion, with the stock off 54% from that high.
That compares to GM's market cap of $58 billion.Road aheadTo achieve further upside, the company will need to address several factors, including quality and recall issues as well as costs — areas Farley has tried to combat for years.Ford has spent billions of dollars on warranty and recall blems in recent years, setting industry-wide records for the number of recalls in 2025."To justify further upside for Ford it would require a multiple re-rating, which we believe may be a challenge," Barclays analyst Dan Levy said in a Sept.
12 investor note, citing overhangs of structural costs, quality and recalls.
"The cycle of recalls remains a challenge, and it's un when this cycle might end."While there have been imvements, the company remains at a disadvantage to its peers when it comes to costs.In 2023, Ford said it faced an overall cost disadvantage of between $7 billion and $8 billion, including $3 billion to $4 billion in material costs and $3 billion in structural costs, in addition to recall costs that the company considers "special items."Since then, Ford has been working to trim that figure and imve its duct and quality, including closing roughly $1.5 billion in its material cost gap last year.
The company, executives said in July, is on track for another $1 billion reduction in costs this year, excluding tariff impacts — increasing that figure to $2.5 billion."GM's still better than us on cost, but we made a lot of gress this year," Farley said Tuesday.
"First time, without restructuring, we got a billion year-over-year cost down, which is a big deal."Ford Motor President and CEO Jim Farley talks the Mustang GTD during the press day of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
September 13, 2023.
Rebecca Cook | ReutersAmid Ford's pullback in costs, the company under Farley has altered its plans for all-electric vehicles, including taking a nearly $2 billion hit last year for delaying and canceling EVs.Farley on Tuesday said he "wouldn't be surprised" if sales of EVs fell from a market of around 10% to 12% in September — which is expected to be a record — to 5% this month after a federal incentive gram for electric vehicles .Along with its self-inflicted cost issues, Ford has been managing tariffs, electrification and a volatile regulatory landscape.
There have been a slew of federal changes but some, such as the elimination of national emissions penalties, are assisting the automaker in offsetting expected tariff impacts of $3 billion this year.
"We've got to work through a couple of these policy issues that could be a big tailwind for the company," Farley said Tuesday, adding its commercial remains another highlight.
"I don't think the market has understood the benefit of the EPA rule change. It's going to be big for our industry, for companies Ford."