If You'd Invested $10,000 in Ford Stock 10 Years Ago, Here's How Much You'd Have Today

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) has been on a tear recently. Shares of the Detroit auto giant have soared 28% over the past 12 months (as of July 21), outperforming the S&P 500 index.

Investors might want to view this as an anomaly, though. The long-term trend is less encouraging.

If you'd invested $10,000 in this automotive stock 10 years ago, here's how much you'd have today.

Over the past decade, Ford shares have produced a total return, which includes dividend reinvestment, of 72%. This means that a $10,000 initial capital investment would be worth just over $17,200 today.

Compared to the popular benchmark, this is a disappointing outcome. The S&P 500 index's total return of 305% is more than 4 times larger.

Looking ahead, I think the chances are very slim that Ford can beat the market in the coming decade.

That's because Ford is a capital-intensive, low-growth, and low-profit business. The nature of its operations isn't going to change. This doesn't support outsize share-price gains.

However, income investors might be compelled to own the stock. With a hefty dividend yield of 4.2%, the company can provide certain market participants with a steady stream of payouts if that's what they're looking for.

Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.