The Dearborn automaker sold 235,997 new cars and trucks last month, compared to 250,813 the same month a year ago.
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Most major automakers reported lower sales in May compared to the same month a year ago. Light-vehicle sales slid 6.1% at Ford, 9.6% at Toyota and 4.8% for Honda Motor Co.
Daktronics, Inc (DAKT) tumbled 16.7% or $1.33 to $6.64 after the electronic scoreboards supplier stated net sales in the fourth-quarter ending in April plunged 12.4% from a year ago to $138.5 million.
Fiat Chrysler and Subaru bucked the trend, with sales up 1 percent each.
The drop in auto sales in May was the first decline in auto industry sales since January, according to researcher Autodata Corp. The Company’s price to sales (P/S) ratio for last one year was reported as 1.73 and its price to book ratio for the most recent quarter was 1.58.
Consumer demand for vehicles may be cooling, reflected by the larger discounts that automakers must grant in order to close sales. Sales of the Chevrolet Silverado pickup, the company’s best-seller, dropped 13 percent. And KBB says sales are likely to remain flat all summer. So even if sales plateau, they remain at very high levels.
“The sky is not falling”, said Michelle Krebs, a senior analyst with Autotrader.com.
This May also had one less weekend than last May, which could account for some of the decline.
Mark LaNeve, Ford ” s vice president of USA marketing and sales said “Ford brand average price increase in May jumped to $1,500 per vehicle, almost 50% higher than the industry”. “Initial sales of our all-new Chrysler Pacifica minivan are brisk and we expect further sales growth from this vehicle over the next few months as dealer inventory continues to build”. GM’s rental auto sales were down 49 per cent.
Despite the overall sales decrease, sales of its profitable F-Series trucks increased 9 percent to 67,412. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV (NYSE:FCAU) has declined 30.29% since October 26, 2015 and is downtrending. Ford shares dropped 2.8 percent, closing at $13.11.
Toyota’s US sales skidded 9.6% lower at 219,339 vehicles. Sales of Nissan and Infiniti trucks and SUVs rose 6 per cent, but vehicle sales fell. He added: “I talk to the dealers about this all the time: What needs to be low is still low – unemployment, interest rates, gas prices – and what needs to be high is still high – consumer confidence, the housing market”. But sales at the Acura division dropped 20 percent.
Nissan Motor Co.’s sales fell 1 percent to 133,496.
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Volkswagen brand sales dropped 17 percent to 28,779 as the fallout continues from the German automaker’s diesel emissions. Growth-wise, the niche brand smart led all brands with a 85.3 percent YTD growth rate followed by Land Rover and Volvo at 45.4 percent and 39.4 percent respectively. Both Fiat and Chrysler brand sales fell 19 percent while Dodge sales fell 5 percent. The Jeep Renegade and Jeep Patriot each recorded their best monthly sales ever, while the Ram ProMaster and Ram ProMaster City vans posted their best May sales ever.
