What's Happening With Ford's Shares Today?

Ford Motor Co F shares are ticking higher after the automaker said its technology will enable drivers to take their eyes off the road and their hands off the wheel within the next two years.

"We're getting really close," said CEO Jim Farley in an interview with Bloomberg. “We can do it now pretty regularly with a prototype, but doing it in a cost-effective way is just the progress we're going to need to make.”

Farley is optimistic that Ford can achieve the milestone by 2026, potentially making it the first mass-market car brand to offer Level 3 autonomy.

This level of autonomy allows the car to take over driving under certain conditions, enabling the driver to focus on other activities.

Currently, Ford and other automakers, including General Motors Co. GM, offer hands-free driving features that use eye-tracking devices to ensure the driver remains attentive.

Ford's system, BlueCruise, is under investigation by U.S. safety regulators after being involved in fatal crashes. Tesla Inc. TSLA and others are also being scrutinized by federal authorities for crashes involving their semi-autonomous systems.

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Mercedes-Benz began offering an eyes-off-the-road feature in the U.S. late last year, but it only operates at speeds below 40 miles per hour on pre-approved freeways.

Farley suggested Ford's system would operate at speeds of up to 80 miles per hour on highways, but only under clear skies.

Ford aims to generate recurring revenue by offering subscription services to features such as BlueCruise. Farley sees these high-margin software services as a way to stabilize the cyclical nature of the car business.

Ford is already selling software systems to its commercial customers to manage fleet logistics and sees semi-autonomous features as a means to attract individual retail customers to buy software subscriptions.

Ford stock has lost more than 3% in the last 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the stock via Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF SCHD and IShares MSCI USA Value Factor ETF VLUE.

Price Action: F shares are trading higher by 0.74% at $12.22 at last check Monday.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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