Is Ford Planning to Sell Part of Its Spain Plant to Geely?

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By Ronald Tech

Ford Motor Company F is reportedly in highly advanced discussions with Geely Automobile Holdings Limited (GELHY) over the potential sale of part of its Valencia manufacturing plant in Spain. The agreement could also pave the way for a new electric vehicle project.

Per Spanish outlet La Tribuna de Automoción, as cited in an Electrek article, Geely plans to acquire the Body 3 assembly lines at Ford’s Valencia facility and is evaluating the production of a new model, internally known as “135,” at the site.

The vehicle is believed to be the EX2, which would reportedly offer hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric variants built on Geely’s Global Intelligent Electric Architecture (GEA) platform.

Geely may also manufacture a Ford vehicle using the same GEA platform. Geely’s EX2 electric hatchback was China’s top-selling car last year and is expected to be marketed in Europe under the E2 name. The discussion is progressing quickly, with Geely already reaching out to local suppliers.

Per a Ford spokesperson, the company regularly engages in discussions with multiple firms on various projects, though no final agreement has been reached.

Ford has increasingly leaned on strategic partnerships in Europe as part of its restructuring efforts to lower costs and compete more effectively with fast-growing Chinese EV makers. The company’s electric Explorer and Capri models already use Volkswagen AG’s MEB platform, shared with the ID.4 and ID.5. 

Divesting part of the underutilized Valencia plant could provide Ford with additional funding while also giving it access to Geely’s EV and software technologies as it works to strengthen its European operations.

F carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

F’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates  

Ford has underperformed the Zacks Automotive-Domestic industry and its peer,  General Motors Company (GM), while outperforming Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) in the last six months. Its shares have lost 7.5% compared with the industry’s decline of 3.9%. Tesla has lost 10.4%, while General Motors has gained 10.8% in the same period.

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From a valuation perspective, F appears undervalued. Going by its price/sales ratio, the company is trading at a forward sales multiple of 0.28, lower than the industry’s 3.43. Tesla is trading at a forward sales multiple of 14.25, while General Motors is trading at 0.38.

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The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ford’s 2026 and 2027 EPS has moved up 5 cents and down 2 cents, respectively, in the past seven days. 

 

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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