Ford beats estimates with $1.12 billion net profit in Q2 despite virus

Detroit – Ford Motor Co. posted results Thursday that were not as grim as expected for its second quarter, during which its U.S. factories were shuttered for half the period to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus and car buyers sheltering in place. Ford reported a $1.12 billion (¥117.1 billion) second-quarter net profit, pushed into the black by a $3.5 billion gain on the value of its stake in the Argo AI autonomous vehicle operation. Without the one-time gain, the company lost $1.9 billion, or 35 cents per share. But that was far better than the $1.17 a share loss Wall Street had expected, according to FactSet. A year ago, Ford posted a $148 million net profit.