Key Takeaways XOM's 15.44% debt-to-capitalization helps it operate smoothly when oil and gas prices fall.Low leverage lets XOM borrow on favorable terms, pursue acquisitions and keep rewarding shareholders.XOM is up 37.2% in a year; 9.97X EV/EBITDA and 2026 earnings estimates moved higher. Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM - Free Report) is an integrated energy giant, but generates the bulk of its earnings from the upstream operations. With a strong presence in the prolific Permian Basin and offshore Guyana resources, its top and bottom lines are highly vulnerable to fluctuations in oil and natural gas prices.
But investors should not worry much about this vulnerability since ExxonMobil has a strong balance sheet. With a debt-to-capitalization of 15.44%, the integrated energy giant has significantly lower exposure to debt capital. Thus, unlike many other energy companies, ExxonMobil can rely on its strong balance sheet when oil and natural gas prices turn low, and the business scenario becomes unfavorable.
With lower exposure to debt capital, XOM can secure additional debt on favorable terms during uncertain situations, allowing it to operate smoothly, pursue lucrative acquisitions and continue rewarding shareholders.
CVX & EOG Also Have Low Debt Load
Chevron Corporation (CVX - Free Report) and EOG Resources Inc. (EOG - Free Report) , both having robust balance sheets, can also sail through an unfavorable business environment due to their strong financials. While CVX has a debt-to-capitalization of 19.35%, EOG’s debt-to-capitalization stands at 20.42%.
XOM’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of XOM have gained 37.2% over the past year compared with the 35.3% improvement of the industry.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, XOM trades at a trailing 12-month enterprise value to EBITDA of 9.97X. This is above the broader industry average of 6.40X.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for XOM’s 2026 earnings has seen upward revisions over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
ExxonMobil currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The company logo for Exxon Mobil Corporation is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., July 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
CompaniesLONDON/HOUSTON, June 11 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil's (XOM.N), opens new tab head of global trading Tracey Gunnlaugsson is retiring, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Gunnlaugsson, based in Houston according to her LinkedIn profile, was appointed to lead the trading division in 2023 after previously serving as human resources vice president at the company for nearly five years.
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Exxon declined to comment. Reuters could not immediately reach Gunnlaugsson for a comment.
The oil major's earnings have been dented by what Exxon describes as trading-related "timing losses", despite higher oil prices from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The company reported a $3.9 billion paper loss stemming from derivatives in the first quarter which pushed net income down to its lowest level in five years.
The losses contrasted with the first-quarter trading profits of European oil majors, which reaped billions of dollars from this year's energy supply crunch triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
European majors have spent decades building trading desks, employing hundreds of people who buy and sell crude, fuels and gas to take advantage of price gaps across regions and time periods, and also taking positions in derivatives markets. However, traders at Exxon, and U.S. competitor Chevron (CVX.N), opens new tab, focus on optimizing flows within their own networks of production, refineries and fuel retail outlets. That approach prioritizes predictability but can limit opportunities to profit from extreme market moves.
Exxon uses financial derivatives to mitigate the risk of price changes during the time it takes to deliver cargoes to customers. The value of the physical shipment is not reflected in earnings until the transaction is complete, which created a large unfavorable timing impact, the company has said.
The timing impacts are expected to unwind in subsequent quarters and result in profitability, Exxon CFO Neil Hansen said in an interview last month.
During the earnings call with analysts, Exxon CEO Darren Woods said the company was confident the losses were a pure timing problem "that will work itself out."
"The timing impact here is primarily driven by the fact that the trading organization is taking advantage of the opportunities in the marketplace and locking in profit," he said.
Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in London, and Arathy Somasekhar and Sheila Dang in Houston; Editing by Nathan Crooks and Chizu Nomiyama
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A London-based senior correspondent covering UK-listed energy companies including BP and Shell and energy developments in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Exxon Mobil Corp began work on Wednesday night at its Beaumont, Texas refining and petrochemical complex, according to a notice the company posted online to notify nearby residents of increased actvity and flaring.
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What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFinding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum trading is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook, and these investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." The Momentum Style Score can pinpoint good times to build a position in a stock, using factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates.
VGM ScoreIf you like to use all three kinds of investing, then the VGM Score is for you. It's a combination of all Style Scores, and is an important indicator to use with the Zacks Rank. The VGM Score rates each stock on their shared weighted styles, narrowing down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank, which is a proprietary stock-rating model, employs earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to make building a winning portfolio easier.
It's highly successful, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +24% average annual return since 1988. That's more than double the S&P 500. But because of the large number of stocks we rate, there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
You want to make sure you're buying stocks with the highest likelihood of success, and to do that, you'll need to pick stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you like a stock that only has a #3 (Hold) rank, it should also have Scores of A or B to guarantee as much upside potential as possible.
The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.
For instance, a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one that boasts Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings forecast, and a much greater likelihood its share price will decline as well.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Exxon Mobil (XOM - Free Report) Over the past decade, ExxonMobil has undergone a significant transformation, reshaping its business to adapt to evolving energy demands, financial discipline and environmental considerations. Traditionally reliant on oil and gas, the company has streamlined operations and focused capital on high-return, low-cost projects. ExxonMobil has achieved nearly $15.6 billion in structural cost savings since 2019, strategically enhancing its earnings power and improving cost efficiency.
XOM is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 12.42; value investors should take notice.
Seven analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $2.28 to $11.80 per share. XOM also boasts an average earnings surprise of +6%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, XOM should be on investors' short list.
3D-printed oil pump jacks and the ExxonMobil logo appear in this illustration taken March 2, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
CompaniesJune 12 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N), opens new tab is exploring potential acquisition targets, including Australia's Woodside Energy Group (WDS.AX), opens new tab, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Any move for Woodside would further strengthen the U.S. oil major's position in liquefied natural gas (LNG), a business that major energy companies increasingly see as a key growth area as rising power demand boosts gas consumption.
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According to Bloomberg, Woodside is one of several targets Exxon has been evaluating.
U.S.-listed shares of Woodside were up 6% in morning trade, while Exxon shares rose 0.7%.
Woodside declined to comment. Exxon did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.
Reporting by Sumit Saha in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
The company logo for Exxon Mobil Corporation is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., July 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
SummaryCompaniesTracey Gunnlaugsson retires as head of trading, David Brown also retiring, sources sayAlex Volkov has nearly 30 years at Exxon, with roles in US, Russia, LondonExxon reported $3.9 billion derivatives loss in Q1, lagging European rivalsHOUSTON, June 12 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), opens new tab was poised to name Alex Volkov as head of global trading, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.
On Thursday, Reuters reported that sources said Tracey Gunnlaugsson, who led the trading division since 2023, was set to retire. Exxon declined to comment.
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Reuters could not immediately reach Volkov for comment.
Volkov, based in Texas, has spent nearly three decades at Exxon, holding roles across the U.S., Russia and London, according to his LinkedIn profile. He has served as a vice president in several parts of the business, including global LNG marketing, upstream commercial, strategy and business development, and, currently, commercial and integration.
David Brown, who was an international crude trader, is also retiring from Exxon, three sources said.
Exxon in May a $3.9 billion paper loss stemming from derivatives in the first quarter which pushed net income down to its lowest level in five years. The losses contrasted with the first-quarter trading profits of European oil majors, which have spent decades building trading desks and billions of dollars from this year's energy supply crunch triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar in Houston; Editing by Nathan Crooks and David Gregorio
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Zoom shares are climbing with conviction. What’s behind ZM gains? Q1 HighlightsZoom reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.55, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42. In addition, it posted revenue of $1.23 billion, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion and representing a 5.5% year-over-year increase.
Enterprise revenue increased 7.2% year-over-year to $755.7 million, while Online revenue increased 2.8% to $483.3 million.
Founder and CEO Eric Yuan said the company saw "continued momentum" during the quarter, highlighting growing adoption of Zoom's AI offerings.
"Customers are increasingly adopting Zoom as an AI-first system of action for modern work, with AI Companion paid users growing 184% year over year, and My Notes reaching 1.5 million licensed users within just four months of launch," Yuan said.
The company also said Zoom Customer Experience continued to deliver accelerating high double-digit growth during the quarter.
At the end of the first quarter, Zoom had 4,534 customers contributing more than $100,000 in trailing 12-month revenue, representing an 8.2% increase year-over-year.
Zoom's trailing 12-month net dollar expansion rate for Enterprise customers increased to 99% from 98% in the prior-year period.
Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $7.7 billion as of April 30, excluding restricted cash.
Zoom also announced that its board authorized the repurchase of an additional $1 billion of outstanding Class A common stock, adding to the $625 million remaining authorization as of April 30.
GuidanceZoom expects second-quarter adjusted earnings per share between $1.45 and $1.47, versus the consensus estimate of $1.48. In addition, it anticipates revenue of $1.26 billion to $1.27 billion, versus the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion.
Zoom also raised its fiscal-year 2027 adjusted earnings per share guidance from between $5.77 to $5.81 to between $5.96 to $6.00, versus the consensus estimate of $5.87. Zoom raised its revenue guidance from between $5.06 billion and $5.07 billion to between $5.08 billion and $5.09 billion, versus the consensus estimate of $5.07 billion.
Analyst Consensus & Recent ActionsThe stock carries a Buy rating with an average price target of $104.75. Recent analyst moves include:
Piper Sandler: Neutral (Raises Target to $107.00) (May 22) Mizuho: Outperform (Raises Target to $120.00) (May 22) Keybanc: Upgraded to Sector Weight (May 22) Technical Picture Remains BullishZoom is trading about 4.1% above its 20-day SMA ($100.61) and roughly 23.2% above its 200-day SMA ($84.97), keeping the intermediate and long-term trend pointed higher. The 20-day SMA is above the 50-day SMA, and the golden cross in May (50-day SMA moving above the 200-day SMA) reinforces that the bigger-picture trend has flipped bullish.
Momentum is more "reset than stretched" right now, with RSI at 49.77 sitting in neutral territory after earlier extremes (oversold in February and overbought in April). In plain terms, RSI helps gauge whether a move is getting overheated; here, it suggests the stock has room to move without immediately flashing an overbought warning.
Key Resistance: $111.50 — sits right under the 52-week high area ($111.56), a zone where rallies can stall as sellers defend prior peaks Key Support: $87.00 — lines up near the broader moving-average cluster (around the 100-day/200-day region), a level that can act as a "line in the sand" if the trend cools Zoom Shares GainZM Price Action: At the time of publication, Zoom shares are trading 9.56% higher at $106.00, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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Zoom Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:ZOOM) reported first quarter results that topped Wall Street expectations, driven by stronger enterprise demand and rapid adoption of its AI features, sending shares up roughly 12% in Friday morning trading.
The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.55, ahead of analyst estimates of about $1.41, while revenue rose to $1.24 billion versus consensus expectations of $1.22 billion.
Total revenue increased 5.5% year over year, or 4.6% in constant currency, according to the company.
Zoom said growth was supported by continued expansion in its enterprise segment and accelerating engagement with AI-driven tools. Paid usage of its AI Companion product increased 184% year over year during the quarter, a trend the company pointed to as a meaningful contributor to customer expansion and retention.
Enterprise revenue rose 7.2% to $755.7 million, beating expectations of about $738.8 million. Online revenue increased to $483.3 million, slightly ahead of estimates.
The company also reported 4,534 customers generating more than $100,000 in trailing 12-month revenue, an 8.2% increase from a year earlier.
“Customers are increasingly adopting Zoom as an AI-first system of action for modern work, with AI Companion paid users growing 184% year over year, and My Notes reaching 1.5 million licensed users within just four months of launch,” Zoom CEO Eric Yuan said.
“With strong profitability, cash flow, and an increased share repurchase authorization, we remain focused on turning AI innovation into durable growth, measurable customer value, and long-term shareholder returns.”
Looking ahead, Zoom issued guidance for the second quarter of fiscal 2027 calling for revenue between $1.265 billion and $1.27 billion, with non-GAAP earnings per share expected between $1.45 and $1.47.
For the full fiscal year, the company projected revenue of $5.08 billion to $5.09 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $5.96 to $6, alongside free cash flow of $1.70 billion to $1.74 billion.
Key Takeaways Zoom posted fiscal Q1 EPS of $1.55 and revenues of $1.24B, beating guidance and rising Y/Y. Zoom's enterprise revenues rose 7.2%, with large customers growing 8.2% to 4,534 accounts.Zoom raised fiscal 2027 outlook and expanded AI push, with AI Companion users up 184% Y/Y. Zoom Communications (ZM - Free Report) reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 adjusted earnings of $1.55 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9.93% and increased 8.4% year over year. The figure also came in 13 cents above the company's guided range of $1.40-$1.42.
Revenues of $1.24 billion beat the consensus mark by 1.26% and increased 5.5% year over year, exceeding the guidance by $14 million. Adjusting for foreign currency impact, revenues in constant currency were $1.23 billion, up 4.6% year over year.
ZM's Q1 DetailsEnterprise revenues, which account for 61% of total revenues, increased 7.2% year over year to $755.7 million. Online revenues, which represent 39% of total revenues, increased 2.8% year over year to $483.3 million. Customers contributing more than $100,000 in revenues in the trailing 12 months grew 8.2% to 4,534. These customers accounted for 33% of revenues, up one percentage point year over year.
The company reported a trailing 12-month net dollar expansion rate for Enterprise customers of 99%, up from 98% in the year-ago quarter. Online average monthly churn was 3.0% in the first quarter compared with 2.8% in the prior-year period. The percentage of total Online MRR from Online customers with a continued term of service of at least 16 months was 74.4%, up 20 basis points year over year.
ZM's Margin & Operating DetailsNon-GAAP gross margin in the fiscal first quarter was 79.9% compared with 79.2% in the year-ago period, expanding 70 basis points. On a GAAP basis, research and development expenses increased 11% year over year to $227.9 million. Sales and marketing expenses declined 4.9% to $330.1 million, and general and administrative expenses fell 5.9% to $96.3 million. Non-GAAP operating income rose 8.9% to $508.7 million year over year, exceeding the high end of guidance by $17 million.
The non-GAAP operating margin was 41.1%, up 130 basis points from 39.8% in the year-ago quarter. GAAP income from operations was $310.5 million, with a GAAP operating margin of 25.1%, up 450 basis points year over year.
ZM's Balance Sheet & Cash FlowTotal cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities, excluding restricted cash, as of April 30, 2026, were $7.7 billion, compared with $7.8 billion as of Jan. 31, 2026. Net cash provided by operating activities was $521.6 million for the fiscal first quarter compared with $489.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Free cash flow was $500.5 million compared with $463.4 million in the prior-year quarter. In the first quarter, Zoom repurchased 4.2 million shares of Class A common stock for $362 million.
ZM's Q1 DevelopmentsDuring the quarter, Zoom appointed Russell Dicker as chief product officer to lead its AI-first product roadmap. The company advanced its AI strategy with AI Companion 3.0, with paid AI Companion monthly active users growing 184% year over year and the newly launched My Notes reaching 1.5 million monthly active users within four months of launch. Zoom also launched Zoom AI services — including the Scribe API for speech-to-text — and introduced CX Insights and AI Expert Assist 3.0 within Zoom Customer Experience. Alongside the earnings release, Zoom's board authorized an incremental $1.0 billion share repurchase, on top of the $625 million remaining under its prior authorization as of April 30, 2026.
ZM's Q2 & FY27 GuidanceZoom expects its second-quarter fiscal 2027 revenues to be between $1.265 billion and $1.270 billion. Revenues on a constant-currency basis are expected to be between $1.262 billion and $1.267 billion. Non-GAAP income from operations is expected to be between $508 million and $513 million. Non-GAAP earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $1.45-$1.47, based on approximately 304 million weighted average shares outstanding. For fiscal 2027, Zoom raised its guidance and now expects revenues in the range of $5.08-$5.09 billion. Revenues on a constant-currency basis are expected to be between $5.062 billion and $5.072 billion. Non-GAAP income from operations is expected to be between $2.065 billion and $2.075 billion. Non-GAAP EPS are expected to be in the band of $5.96-$6. The company expects free cash flow between $1.7 billion and $1.74 billion.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to ConsiderCurrently, ZM carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector are Broadcom (AVGO - Free Report) , Celestica (CLS - Free Report) and Amphenol (APH - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Shares of Broadcom have gained 18.8% year to date. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Broadcom’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $11.47 per share, up by 2 cents over the past seven days, indicating a year-over-year surge of 68.2%.
Shares of Celestica have gained 14.7% year to date. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Celestica’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $10.16 per share, up 15.1% over the past 30 days, indicating a year-over-year jump of 67.9%.
Amphenol shares have declined 11.7% year to date. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for APH’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $4.76 per share, up 11.4% over the past 30 days, indicating a year-over-year increase of 42.5%.
Zoom Communications ZM reported impressive Q1 results, surpassing expectations in both revenue and earnings per share (EPS). The company is enhancing its position as an AI-driven “system of action,” while maintaining strong profitability and cash flow.
Q1 adjusted EPS reached $1.55, exceeding the FactSet consensus by $0.13. Revenue grew 5.5% year-over-year to $1.24 billion, also beating estimates. Enterprise revenue rose 7.2% to $755.7 million, making up 61% of total sales, indicating a shift towards higher-value customers. ZM ended the quarter with 4,534 customers generating over $100,000 in trailing 12-month revenue, an 8.2% increase year-over-year, while enterprise net dollar expansion improved to 99%. AI adoption showed significant growth, with paid monthly active users for AI Companion up 184% year-over-year and My Notes exceeding 1.5 million licensed users within four months. The introduction of new AI monetization features, including Custom AI Companion and ZVA Receptionist, suggests potential for increased revenue across various use cases. Backlog and billings remained strong, with remaining performance obligations (RPO) up 11% to approximately $4.3 billion and non-current RPO up 19%. Profitability metrics were solid, with a non-GAAP operating margin of 41.1% and a free cash flow margin of 40.4%. The company also announced a $1.0 billion share repurchase program. Guidance for Q2 EPS is projected at $1.45-$1.47, slightly below consensus, while revenue guidance of $1.265-$1.270 billion aligns closely with expectations. For FY27, EPS guidance is $5.96-$6.00 and revenue guidance is $5.08-$5.09 billion, both above consensus estimates.ZM's Q1 performance highlights the ongoing transition to a more diversified growth model, supported by strong demand for AI-driven products. Management emphasized the company's evolution beyond traditional meetings into a comprehensive workflow platform, leveraging conversation data through AI. This strategic direction is still in its early stages, but the evidence of product-market fit, particularly with AI Companion and Custom AI Companion, is promising. The robust margins and cash flow, alongside the new buyback program, reflect confidence in ZM's business sustainability.
This stock alert was generated using automated technology and GuruFocus financial data to provide readers with timely and accurate market reporting. This content was reviewed by GuruFocus editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
Shares of Zoom jumped after the company raised its full-year forecast for both adjusted earnings and revenue, prompting an upgrade at KeyBanc and higher price targets at both RBC and Baird. Zoom CFO Michelle Chang joins Ed Ludlow on "Bloomberg Tech.
Zoom Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM) on Thursday reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and raised its FY27 guidance.
Zoom reported revenue of $1.24 billion for the first quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. The company posted first-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.55 per share, beating analyst estimates of $1.42 per share, according to Benzinga Pro.
"Customers are increasingly adopting Zoom as an AI-first system of action for modern work, with AI Companion paid users growing 184% year over year, and My Notes reaching 1.5 million licensed users within just four months of launch," said Eric Yuan, founder and CEO of Zoom.
The company now expects full-year revenue of $5.08 billion to $5.09 billion, versus estimates of $5.07 billion. Zoom now sees full-year adjusted earnings of $5.96 to $6 per share versus estimates of $5.87 per share.
Zoom shares gained 10.4% to trade at $106.89 on Friday.
These analysts made changes to their price targets on Zoom following earnings announcement.
Considering buying ZM stock? Here’s what analysts think:
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Zoom has reportedly netted around $1 billion from an investment in Anthropic.
That’s according to a report Friday (May 22) from Bloomberg News, citing a regulatory filing. The total value of the videoconferencing firm’s stake in the artificial intelligence startup is about $1.27 billion, the report added, a number that could climb as Anthropic wraps another round of funding.
Zoom invested $51 million in Anthropic in 2023 as part of a partnership to use the company’s Claude models.
Since then, the Bloomberg report added, Anthropic has turned into one of the fastest-growing and most-watched startups in the world.
Zoom’s assessment of its stake in Anthropic is based on a fundraising round from February valuing the company at $380 billion, though the startup is reportedly close to finalizing a round at a valuation of more than $900 billion, and by some calculations, as high as $1 trillion.
“A timely investment in a financial rocket ship” has helped boost Zoom’s share price in recent weeks, KeyBanc analyst Jackson Ader said in a note after Zoom’s quarterly earnings report last week, the report added.
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In other AI news, recent PYMNTS Intelligence research shows a lack of progress in preparing workers to use AI on the job.
An April PYMNTS Intelligence study, “Wage to Wallet™ Index – The Resilience Deficit: Labor Workers in an Automated Economy,” found that close to half of all workers in the United States in salaried or higher-paying roles had gotten no on-the-job training on how to use AI tools, new technologies or automated processes in their positions in the prior 12 months.
“College graduates know how to use ChatGPT to write essays and Google Gemini’s Nano Banana to generate images and edit photos, but too few workers are getting too little guidance on how to use the technological tools increasingly penetrating the workplace,” PYMNTS wrote.
A separate PYMNTS Intelligence report from earlier this month, “Financial Services Pulls Ahead in the Enterprise AI Race,” revealed that companies are rapidly embedding AI into their workflows and operations.
“Financial services firms have scaled AI across nearly three times as many tasks as healthcare firms, concentrating their deployment in back-office functions like revenue recognition, credit risk assessment and sales forecasting,” the report said. “Healthcare is deploying AI through customer service chatbots. Media and advertising companies are using AI for content quality assurance, board and executive briefing preparation, and improving logistics.”
For all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily AI Newsletter.
Have you evaluated the performance of Zoom Communications' (ZM - Free Report) international operations for the quarter ending April 2026? Given the extensive global presence of this video-conferencing company, analyzing the patterns in international revenues is crucial for understanding its financial strength and potential for growth.
In the current global economy, which is more interconnected than ever, a company's success in penetrating international markets is crucial for its financial health and growth journey. Investors must understand a company's dependence on overseas markets, as this offers a window into the company's earnings stability, its ability to benefit from varied economic cycles and its potential for long-term growth.
Participation in global economies acts as a defense against economic difficulties at home and a pathway to more rapidly developing economies. However, it also comes with the complexities of dealing with fluctuating currencies, geopolitical risks and different market dynamics.
While delving into ZM's performance for the past quarter, we observed some fascinating trends in the revenue from its foreign segments that are commonly modeled and observed by analysts on Wall Street.
The company's total revenue for the quarter stood at $1.24 billion, increasing 5.5% year over year. Now, let's delve into ZM's international revenue breakdown to gain insights into the significance of its operations beyond home turf.
A Closer Look at ZM's Revenue Streams AbroadEMEA generated $194.92 million in revenues for the company in the last quarter, constituting 15.7% of the total. This represented a surprise of +1.74% compared to the $191.59 million projected by Wall Street analysts. Comparatively, in the previous quarter, EMEA accounted for $196 million (15.7%), and in the year-ago quarter, it contributed $185 million (15.8%) to the total revenue.
Of the total revenue, $150.51 million came from APAC during the last fiscal quarter, accounting for 12.2%. This represented a surprise of +1.98% as analysts had expected the region to contribute $147.59 million to the total revenue. In comparison, the region contributed $151 million, or 12.1%, and $142 million, or 12.1%, to total revenue in the previous and year-ago quarters, respectively.
International Market Revenue ProjectionsThe current fiscal quarter's total revenue for Zoom, as projected by Wall Street analysts, is expected to reach $1.27 billion, reflecting an increase of 4% from the same quarter last year. The breakdown of this revenue by foreign region is as follows: EMEA is anticipated to contribute 15.7% or $199.18 million, and APAC 12.1% or $153.44 million.
Analysts expect the company to report a total annual revenue of $5.06 billion for the full year, marking an increase of 3.9% compared to last year. The expected revenue contributions from EMEA and APAC are projected to be 15.9% ($805.19 million), and 12.3% ($620.29 million) of the total revenue, in that order.
Final ThoughtsZoom's reliance on international markets for revenues offers both opportunities and risks. Hence, keeping an eye on its international revenue trends could significantly help forecast the company's prospects.
With the increasing intricacies of global interdependence and geopolitical strife, Wall Street analysts meticulously observe these patterns, especially for companies with an international footprint, to tweak their forecasts of earnings. Importantly, several additional factors, such as a company's domestic market status, also impact these earnings forecasts.
Here at Zacks, we put a great deal of emphasis on a company's changing earnings outlook, as empirical research has shown that's a powerful force driving a stock's near-term price performance. Quite naturally, the correlation is positive here -- an upward revision in earnings estimates drives the stock price higher.
The Zacks Rank, our proprietary stock rating mechanism, demonstrates a notable performance history confirmed through external audits. It effectively utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions to act as a predictor of a stock's price performance in the near term.
Currently, Zoom holds a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), signifying its potential to match the overall market's performance in the forthcoming period. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>> .
Reviewing Zoom Communications' Recent Stock Price TrendsOver the past month, the stock has gained 14.8% versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's 4.8% increase. The Zacks Computer and Technology sector, of which Zoom is a part, has risen 9.5% over the same period. The company's shares have increased 42.9% over the past three months compared to the S&P 500's 8.4% increase. Over the same period, the sector has risen 18.7%
Key Takeaways Zoom beat Q1 revenues and EPS, then lifted FY2027 revenues and non-GAAP EPS guidance.AI Companion paid MAUs rose 184% YoY; My Notes hit 1.5M users in four months.Zoom CX saw accelerating high double-digit growth; paid AI was in 9 of the top 10 ZCX deals. Zoom Communications, Inc. (ZM - Free Report) used its first-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings call to argue that its next phase is less about video meetings and more about turning conversations into completed work. Management’s central message was that AI is starting to pull through both product adoption and larger multiproduct deals.
That framing mattered because Zoom also paired the strategy update with a revenue beat, higher full-year guidance and a larger buyback authorization, giving investors a clearer view of how management wants AI and customer experience to support durable growth.
ZM Pushes AI Beyond Meeting SummariesChief executive officer Eric Yuan spent much of the call recasting Zoom as an AI-first system of action for modern work. His emphasis was on moving from conversation-centric products to tools that automate follow-through, retrieval and workflows after a call ends.
That pitch was backed by rising usage. Management said AI Companion paid monthly active users climbed 184% year over year, while My Notes reached 1.5 million users within four months of launch. The company positioned those products as proof that AI is gaining traction inside the installed base.
Yuan also pointed to custom AI Companion, workflow tools and enterprise retrieval as the features meant to convert that usage into monetization. In Q&A, he said those capabilities are key to shifting Zoom from a platform centered on calls to one centered on task completion.
Zoom Finds Growth in CX and PhoneA second theme was the widening role of customer experience and phone offerings. Yuan said Zoom Customer Experience posted accelerating high double-digit growth, with paid AI included in nine of the top 10 ZCX deals.
Management tied that momentum to competitive displacements and to Zoom’s pitch around unified communications plus contact center. Yuan argued Zoom’s advantage is that it can bridge UC and CX on a native platform, while chief financial officer Michelle Chang said larger deals increasingly reflect that bundled story.
Zoom Phone also remained important. Yuan said phone annual recurring revenues grew in the mid-teens, and several of the customer examples highlighted on the call paired phone with AI and contact center tools rather than selling a single product in isolation.
ZM Raises Full-Year ViewThe quarter’s financial backdrop was solid but management kept the focus on what it means for the year ahead. Revenues rose 5.5% to $1.24 billion, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22 billion by 1.26%. Adjusted EPS came in at $1.55, topping the consensus mark of $1.41 by 9.59%.
Chang said revenues exceeded the high end of guidance by about $14 million and non-GAAP operating income topped the high end by $17 million. Enterprise revenues grew 7.2%, with enterprise customers now accounting for 61% of total revenues.
For fiscal 2027, Zoom raised guidance to $5.080-$5.090 billion in revenues and $5.96 to $6.00 in non-GAAP EPS. It also raised its repurchase authorization by $1 billion, adding to the $625 million remaining as of April 30.
Zoom Faces Questions on Online TrendsAnalysts pressed management on whether the stronger quarter was mostly an enterprise story and whether online trends remain a constraint. Chang acknowledged that online average monthly churn rose to 3.0% from 2.8% a year earlier, though she described the increase as nominal.
She drew a sharper contrast between the segments by calling enterprise growth durable and saying online will still grow slightly for the full year, even as quarterly growth rates slow from easier comparisons and foreign exchange effects.
That exchange mattered because it showed where management believes the business is gaining quality. The call repeatedly returned to enterprise mix, AI monetization and higher-value bundled deals rather than to volume growth in the legacy online channel.
ZM Leans on Longer-Term Enterprise DealsAnother point of investor focus was deal structure. Chang said deferred revenues grew 5% year over year, above prior expectations, because fewer large contracts required grace periods than management had anticipated.
She also highlighted remaining performance obligations of about $4.3 billion, up 11%, driven by 19% growth in noncurrent RPO. In Q&A, Chang linked that trend to longer-duration multiproduct deals, especially in phone, contact center and AI.
Yuan reinforced that message by saying eight of the top 10 CX deals displaced legacy vendors and all 10 were channel driven. That gave management another way to argue that Zoom’s newer enterprise motions are scaling.
Zoom Keeps Its Message on ExecutionBy the end of the call, management’s tone was confident and tightly focused. Yuan repeatedly returned to product innovation, AI completion workflows and the need to improve customer awareness of what the platform can now do.
Chang’s role on the call was to show that the strategy is being matched by margin discipline, cash flow and capital returns. Together, the prepared remarks and Q&A left the clearest impression that Zoom wants investors to judge it less by meeting growth and more by how effectively it monetizes AI, CX and enterprise platform breadth.
What Zacks Signals SayZM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), with a Value Score of C, Growth Score of C, Momentum Score of B and VGM Score of C. Under the Zacks framework, Rank #1 and #2 stocks paired with A or B Style Scores have the strongest expected near-term performance, while a Rank #3 can still be held, with higher letter grades viewed more favorably than lower ones. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
For ZM, the B Momentum Score stands out more favorably than its other style grades, while the overall Rank and VGM Score point to a more balanced setup than a high-conviction signal. As always, the Zacks Rank can change as earnings estimate revisions move after the quarter and management’s updated outlook are absorbed.
Anthropic is one of the market's most hotly anticipated IPOs, with investors eagerly awaiting the company's announcement that it's going public. The large language model (LLM) maker has been seeing explosive growth, with its revenue reportedly set to double quarter over quarter, from $4.8 billion in Q1 to $10.9 billion in Q2. This acceleration also isn't growth at any cost, as the company is expected to turn in an operating profit of $559 million in Q2.
While it offers a consumer product, Anthropic has made its mark by focusing on the enterprise market, where it generates about 80% of its revenue. The company has found a strong niche in coding, with its Claude Cowork and Claude Code products helping drive its growth.
Anthropic has drawn investments from several large companies, including Amazon and Alphabet. However, there is an under-the-radar stock that's set to benefit much more from Anthropic's success than these behemoths. That company is video-conferencing platform operator, Zoom (ZM +1.28%).
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An early Anthropic investor Zoom's investment arm, Zoom Ventures, took a stake in Anthropic in May 2023. While the original size of the investment hasn't been disclosed, it's widely believed to have been the bulk of the $51 million in investments it made during the quarter. Zoom later made another $46 million investment in Anthropic preferred shares in Q1. In its latest 10-Q filing, it said its total investment was valued at $1.27 billion based on Anthropic's February valuation round, which was done at $380 billion.
However, fast forward a few months, and Anthropic is looking to raise funds at an over $900 billion valuation this month. That would value Zoom's Anthropic holding at over $3 billion. Meanwhile, given its growth, it wouldn't be surprising to see the company eventually IPO at a much higher market cap.
Zoom currently has a market cap of around $31 billion. It also has $7.7 billion in cash and marketable securities to go along with its Anthropic investment and no debt. That means its core business is currently being valued closer to $20 billion. The company is also generating around $2 billion in free cash flow a year.
Image source: Getty Images.
The company's core business has also been showing some signs of life. Revenue rose 5.5% last quarter, with enterprise revenue climbing 7.2%. It also saw its number of customers with more than $100,000 in trailing revenue jump 8.2%.
With Anthropic worth about 13% of Zoom's enterprise value and the company generating a ton of cash and seeing revenue growth, buying Zoom stock can be a sneaky way to play Anthropic before its IPO.
Zoom Communications (ZM - Free Report) is one of the stocks most watched by Zacks.com visitors lately. So, it might be a good idea to review some of the factors that might affect the near-term performance of the stock.
Over the past month, shares of this video-conferencing company have returned +4.4%, compared to the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +5.1% change. During this period, the Zacks Internet - Software industry, which Zoom falls in, has lost 1.2%. The key question now is: What could be the stock's future direction?
While media releases or rumors about a substantial change in a company's business prospects usually make its stock 'trending' and lead to an immediate price change, there are always some fundamental facts that eventually dominate the buy-and-hold decision-making.
Earnings Estimate RevisionsHere at Zacks, we prioritize appraising the change in the projection of a company's future earnings over anything else. That's because we believe the present value of its future stream of earnings is what determines the fair value for its stock.
We essentially look at how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to reflect the impact of the latest business trends. And if earnings estimates go up for a company, the fair value for its stock goes up. A higher fair value than the current market price drives investors' interest in buying the stock, leading to its price moving higher. This is why empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
Zoom is expected to post earnings of $1.47 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of -3.9%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate remained unchanged.
The consensus earnings estimate of $5.9 for the current fiscal year indicates a year-over-year change of -0.3%. This estimate has remained unchanged over the last 30 days.
For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $6.13 indicates a change of +3.9% from what Zoom is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has changed +0.1%.
Having a strong externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool, the Zacks Rank, offers a more conclusive picture of a stock's price direction in the near term, since it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. Due to the size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, Zoom is rated Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:
12 Month EPS
Revenue Growth ForecastWhile earnings growth is arguably the most superior indicator of a company's financial health, nothing happens as such if a business isn't able to grow its revenues. After all, it's nearly impossible for a company to increase its earnings for an extended period without increasing its revenues. So, it's important to know a company's potential revenue growth.
For Zoom, the consensus sales estimate for the current quarter of $1.27 billion indicates a year-over-year change of +4.2%. For the current and next fiscal years, $5.08 billion and $5.25 billion estimates indicate +4.2% and +3.4% changes, respectively.
Last Reported Results and Surprise HistoryZoom reported revenues of $1.24 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +5.5%. EPS of $1.55 for the same period compares with $1.43 a year ago.
Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22 billion, the reported revenues represent a surprise of +1.26%. The EPS surprise was +9.93%.
Over the last four quarters, Zoom surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times. The company topped consensus revenue estimates each time over this period.
ValuationWithout considering a stock's valuation, no investment decision can be efficient. In predicting a stock's future price performance, it's crucial to determine whether its current price correctly reflects the intrinsic value of the underlying business and the company's growth prospects.
While comparing the current values of a company's valuation multiples, such as price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), with its own historical values helps determine whether its stock is fairly valued, overvalued, or undervalued, comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good sense of the reasonability of the stock's price.
The Zacks Value Style Score (part of the Zacks Style Scores system), which pays close attention to both traditional and unconventional valuation metrics to grade stocks from A to F (an A is better than a B; a B is better than a C; and so on), is pretty helpful in identifying whether a stock is overvalued, rightly valued, or temporarily undervalued.
Zoom is graded C on this front, indicating that it is trading at par with its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that have driven this grade.
Bottom LineThe facts discussed here and much other information on Zacks.com might help determine whether or not it's worthwhile paying attention to the market buzz about Zoom. However, its Zacks Rank #3 does suggest that it may perform in line with the broader market in the near term.
Generally available today, ZoomMate combines agentic search, AI-generated presentations and deliverables, and automated execution in Salesforce, Jira, Slack, ServiceNow, and more SAN JOSE, Calif., June 01, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Zoom Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) announced the launch of ZoomMate, an agentic AI work surface to help people move from workplace conversations to execution without losing context along the way. Built on Zoom’s system of action vision announced in March, ZoomMate connects live conversational context to agentic search, workflow execution, custom agents, and AI content creation.
ZoomMate helps users overcome the friction introduced by fragmented tools and incomplete workflows by surfacing information across Zoom and connected business systems, creating deliverables from meeting and enterprise context, and coordinating follow-through across workflows without switching tools. This shift reflects Zoom’s long-term vision for a system of action that moves conversations into completed work.
“What drew me to Zoom was a simple truth: no other company sits where Zoom sits — at the center of every conversation where work decisions get made,” said Russell Dicker, chief product officer at Zoom. “ZoomMate is built on this insight. Before, during, and after the meeting, ZoomMate connects what was decided to what needs to happen next across every system where your work lives.”
“The market is moving away from isolated AI helpers and toward tools that can better connect decisions, data, and workflows across an organization,” said Melody Brue, vice president and principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy. “Many AI offerings operate on the edges of work, with limited access to the real-time context affecting decisions. ZoomMate approaches this differently because it sits inside the conversations where those decisions unfold. This can give it live business context and help make its recommendations more grounded in the work that teams are actually doing.”
ZoomMate capabilities: Search, orchestrate, and complete
ZoomMate introduces advanced agentic AI capabilities that help teams move from insight to completion.
Agentic Search: Bring enterprise knowledge into every conversation
ZoomMate helps users search across Zoom, the web, and third-party systems to find the most relevant information for a project, account, ticket, policy, or business question.By connecting to data sources such as ServiceNow, Salesforce, and Workday, and indexing across users’ integrated enterprise systems, ZoomMate can surface information from enterprise files, including customer records, open issues, service tickets, knowledge articles, project updates, files, and other business content.Relevant context from Zoom Meetings, Phone, Chat, and other connected collaboration platforms — including Google and Microsoft — can be directly integrated into the flow of work, so users always have what they need without switching tools or breaking focus.Results are grounded in the organization's connected knowledge and designed to respect enterprise access controls, permissions, and governance.Unlike enterprise search tools that index documents alone, ZoomMate connects the files, the records, and the conversations behind them.
Orchestrate: Coordinate follow-through across teams, apps, and systems
ZoomMate’s agentic layer enables proactive coordination and execution across systems, combining AI workflows with intelligent agents that can act, learn, and adapt within enterprise environments.Agents can monitor ongoing projects, identify next steps from meeting context, and automatically initiate follow-up actions, ensuring continuity from conversation to completion.Coordinates real-time task execution across meetings, apps, and systems to turn recurring processes into repeatable workflows.Schedules events in Google Calendar or Microsoft Outlook and routes requests to appropriate systems.Updates records, creates follow-up tasks, drafts customer communications, and triggers onboarding or support workflows.Reduces handoff gaps by connecting conversational context with execution. Complete: Turn meetings and enterprise context into finished deliverables
ZoomMate turns meetings into finished work, automatically creating presentations, documents, spreadsheets, reports, and project plans from meeting conversations and enterprise context so teams can move from discussion to execution faster.Leveraging Zoom's AI Productivity Suite, ZoomMate can update deliverables as decisions evolve, keeping plans, documents, and other outputs current in real time without manual syncing.Unlike AI tools that solely rely on prompts or manual context, ZoomMate understands what was discussed to generate grounded, relevant outputs directly from meeting context, delivering content in the form of presentations, documents, and spreadsheets.
How teams can use ZoomMate
ZoomMate integrates into existing team workflows to provide real-time assistance and continuity from the first meeting to the final deliverable. By connecting conversational context with enterprise data, teams can automate repetitive administrative tasks and focus on high-value execution.
Knowledge workers: Users can ask ZoomMate to pull key information from Google Docs, open Jira issues, and surface recent Slack discussions before a meeting starts. Then, they could ask ZoomMate to manage and schedule events in Google Calendar or Outlook without having to hunt down each person’s availability. And finally, ZoomMate can help users track down specific information across various documents and data sources, such as Google Drive and SharePoint, for project updates, while using the conversation as the source of truth.Sales teams: ZoomMate can retrieve account details from Salesforce before a call, update opportunity records immediately after, and draft follow-up proposals using the meeting transcript, without the rep switching applications.Product and engineering teams: ZoomMate can pull project background from Google Docs, identify open Jira issues, surface relevant discussions from collaboration tools, and turn action items into structured plans or status updates that reflect the latest decisions.HR and operations teams: ZoomMate can answer general policy questions from connected knowledge bases, route employee requests to the appropriate system, and automatically trigger onboarding workflows when a new hire's start date is confirmed. Conversations as the orchestration layer for modern work
As AI becomes embedded across workplace software, the next challenge is not simply generating more content or summarizing more meetings — it is helping teams complete the work that conversations create. Zoom believes that conversations are the context layer for modern work because they capture decisions, intent, approvals, objections, and next steps that drive meaningful business outcomes.
ZoomMate is built around that idea. By connecting conversational context with enterprise systems and agentic execution, ZoomMate helps teams move from discussion to action without rebuilding context across disconnected tools. It reflects Zoom’s broader platform vision: a conversation-centric system of action where live collaboration becomes completed work.
ZoomMate is available today for online and direct customers in North America, starting at $20 per user per month with included AI credits. Availability for additional industry verticals and regions, including EMEA and APAC, is expected to roll out later this year.
*Note: While ZoomMate is generally available, it may not be accessible to all users right away, as it is being rolled out gradually.
About Zoom
Zoom (NASDAQ:ZM) is a system of action for modern work, turning live collaboration into completed results. From entrepreneurs to global enterprises, customers choose Zoom to seamlessly collaborate, communicate, and drive outcomes across meetings, phone, contact center, and more — all with the built-in assistance of Zoom AI. Founded in 2011, Zoom is headquartered in San Jose, CA. For more information, visit zoom.com.
Zoom Communications shares surged on Monday after AI startup Anthropic disclosed plans for an initial public offering, boosting the value of Zoom's early investment in the company.
Shares of Zoom rose 11% to $112.86 after Anthropic disclosed that it had confidentially submitted draft registration paperwork to the US Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed initial public offering.
The announcement drew attention to Zoom's investment in the AI company.
Through its venture investment arm, Zoom invested $51 million in Anthropic in 2023.
That stake is now valued at more than $1 billion and could increase further if Anthropic achieves a higher valuation through its IPO process.
Zoom also disclosed in late May that it invested an additional $46 million in Anthropic between the end of January and April, increasing its exposure to one of the most closely watched companies in the artificial intelligence sector.
Anthropic has become one of the leading AI companies, attracting investor interest amid the rapid adoption of generative AI tools across industries.
The startup's decision to pursue a public listing has highlighted the potential gains for early investors, including Zoom.
With Anthropic's valuation rising significantly since Zoom's initial investment, the prospect of an IPO has increased investor focus on the value embedded within Zoom's venture portfolio.
The market reaction reflected optimism that Zoom could benefit not only from its core communications business but also from its strategic investments in emerging AI technologies.
Investor sentiment was also supported by Zoom's launch of ZoomMate, a new AI-powered work surface designed to convert workplace conversations into actionable tasks.
The product is built around Zoom's "system of action" strategy, connecting live meeting context with agentic search capabilities, workflow automation, custom AI agents, and AI-generated content creation tools.
The company said ZoomMate is designed to integrate meetings and productivity functions more closely, allowing users to move directly from discussion to execution within business workflows.
Zoom Video Communications has made ZoomMate available to customers in North America at a starting price of $20 per user per month.
The launch marks another step in the company's efforts to expand beyond video conferencing and establish itself as a broader enterprise productivity platform powered by artificial intelligence.
Zoom's AI initiatives have also influenced analyst sentiment following the company's first-quarter fiscal 2027 results.
Several Wall Street firms raised their price targets after the company's reported results exceeded expectations.
Rosenblatt increased its price target to $130, citing an earnings beat and higher guidance, with revenue, operating income, and free cash flow all surpassing expectations.
Benchmark raised its target to $125 while maintaining a Buy rating, highlighting Zoom's evolution into an AI-enabled enterprise platform.
Piper Sandler lifted its price target to $107, noting that results met expectations and showed modest revenue growth.
Cantor Fitzgerald increased its target to $104, pointing to growing adoption of Zoom's AI and communications products.
The combination of a potentially lucrative Anthropic investment, the rollout of ZoomMate, and improving analyst sentiment has renewed investor interest in Zoom as the company seeks to deepen its presence in the rapidly expanding artificial intelligence market.
Zoom is rebounding strongly, with >30% gains since early 2026, outperforming the broader market. Firming revenue growth, robust profitability, and a deeply undervalued stock underpin my reiterated buy rating. ZM's significant cash position and its >$1 billion stake in Anthropic provide additional upside and strategic flexibility.
Zoom Communications (ZM - Free Report) has been one of the most searched-for stocks on Zacks.com lately. So, you might want to look at some of the facts that could shape the stock's performance in the near term.
Shares of this video-conferencing company have returned -6% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's no change. The Zacks Internet - Software industry, to which Zoom belongs, has gained 0.7% over this period. Now the key question is: Where could the stock be headed in the near term?
Although media reports or rumors about a significant change in a company's business prospects usually cause its stock to trend and lead to an immediate price change, there are always certain fundamental factors that ultimately drive the buy-and-hold decision.
Earnings Estimate RevisionsHere at Zacks, we prioritize appraising the change in the projection of a company's future earnings over anything else. That's because we believe the present value of its future stream of earnings is what determines the fair value for its stock.
We essentially look at how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to reflect the impact of the latest business trends. And if earnings estimates go up for a company, the fair value for its stock goes up. A higher fair value than the current market price drives investors' interest in buying the stock, leading to its price moving higher. This is why empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
For the current quarter, Zoom is expected to post earnings of $1.49 per share, indicating a change of -2.6% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +2.5% over the last 30 days.
The consensus earnings estimate of $6.04 for the current fiscal year indicates a year-over-year change of +2%. This estimate has changed +3.1% over the last 30 days.
For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $6.21 indicates a change of +2.8% from what Zoom is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has changed +1.3%.
Having a strong externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool, the Zacks Rank, offers a more conclusive picture of a stock's price direction in the near term, since it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. Due to the size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, Zoom is rated Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:
12 Month EPS
Projected Revenue GrowthEven though a company's earnings growth is arguably the best indicator of its financial health, nothing much happens if it cannot raise its revenues. It's almost impossible for a company to grow its earnings without growing its revenue for long periods. Therefore, knowing a company's potential revenue growth is crucial.
In the case of Zoom, the consensus sales estimate of $1.27 billion for the current quarter points to a year-over-year change of +4.2%. The $5.08 billion and $5.25 billion estimates for the current and next fiscal years indicate changes of +4.4% and +3.3%, respectively.
Last Reported Results and Surprise HistoryZoom reported revenues of $1.24 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +5.5%. EPS of $1.55 for the same period compares with $1.43 a year ago.
Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22 billion, the reported revenues represent a surprise of +1.26%. The EPS surprise was +9.93%.
Over the last four quarters, Zoom surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times. The company topped consensus revenue estimates each time over this period.
ValuationNo investment decision can be efficient without considering a stock's valuation. Whether a stock's current price rightly reflects the intrinsic value of the underlying business and the company's growth prospects is an essential determinant of its future price performance.
Comparing the current value of a company's valuation multiples, such as its price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), to its own historical values helps ascertain whether its stock is fairly valued, overvalued, or undervalued, whereas comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good sense of how reasonable its stock price is.
As part of the Zacks Style Scores system, the Zacks Value Style Score (which evaluates both traditional and unconventional valuation metrics) organizes stocks into five groups ranging from A to F (A is better than B; B is better than C; and so on), making it helpful in identifying whether a stock is overvalued, rightly valued, or temporarily undervalued.
Zoom is graded C on this front, indicating that it is trading at par with its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that have driven this grade.
Bottom LineThe facts discussed here and much other information on Zacks.com might help determine whether or not it's worthwhile paying attention to the market buzz about Zoom. However, its Zacks Rank #3 does suggest that it may perform in line with the broader market in the near term.
I don't remember the last time Ford Motor (F +0.88%) shares sped up like this. The legacy automotive company completely shifted gears in May, positioning itself as an artificial intelligence (AI) play in a strategic move that sent its stock soaring 44.4% during the month, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Image source: Getty Images.
What is the big Ford energy pivot? There were rumors that Ford may enter the energy business. On May 11, Ford formally launched Ford Energy, which will operate as a subsidiary of the parent company.
Ford Energy will battery energy storage systems (BESS) for data centers, utilities, and large industrial customers. Operations cover the full battery cell manufacturing process, from the production of electrode coils to module assemble and after-sales service.
While investors were fretting over Ford's loss-making electric vehicles (EV) business -- the Model e unit posted $4.8 billion in operating loss in fiscal year 2025 -- recalls costs, and choppy cash flows, the company was working behind the scenes, building BESS manufacturing sites and securing supply chains.
Ford has repurposed its existing EV battery manufacturing plant in Kentucky to build BESS as it strives to enter a red-hot market. The AI boom has suddenly put massive pressure on existing power grids, forcing data center operators and utilities to secure more flexible power solutions and increasingly rely on large-scale storage to manage peak demand and grid instability.
Ford Energy's flagship product, the Ford Energy DC block, is a standardized 20-foot containerized BESS that can last 20 years.
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Within a week of launch, Ford Energy signed a five-year agreement with EDF power solutions to provide up to 4 gigawatt hours (GWh) of DC BESS annually, with a total potential volume of up to 20 GWh over the term of the agreement. Ford expects first deliveries to begin in 2028.
Should you buy Ford stock now, or wait? Analysts have high expectations for Ford Energy, with Morgan Stanley analyst Andrew Percoco valuing the business at $10 billion. Ford's licensing agreement with Chinese battery maker CATL is touted as a significant competitive advantage, as it allows Ford to license battery technology and carve out a space in the BESS market.
The rally in Ford stock, however, means some of the initial optimism is already baked into the current stock price. That explains why the automotive stock has hit the brakes in June, with shares already falling 14% so far this month, as of this writing.
The pullback serves as a stark reminder that despite its new energy business, Ford is still tied to the traditional auto market. Right now, its car sales are far from impressive. In May, Ford's total vehicle sales dropped 13.6% compared to last year, with EVs leading the decline with a 44% drop. Hybrids also slipped nearly 16%, while standard gas-powered vehicles fell 12%.
By pivoting underutilized EV battery capacity toward battery storage, Ford is essentially trying to catch the AI wave. I believe that's a really smart move, but I wouldn't expect Ford to always trade like a hyper-growth tech company. The energy business, however, could provide a solid cushion against a weak auto business, especially if it is as profitable as many expect. That's one gamble investors may want to make for this 4%-yielding stock.
The markets are looking positive for automakers in the early part of Tuesday, as traders are looking to extend recent rallies in these three companies.
The markets look a little perky in the morning, with Tesla looking very much likely to continue to rally, perhaps heading to the $440 level. That being said, I think this is a market that short-term traders will continue to jump in on short-term dips with the 200-day EMA offering a bit of support. To the upside, the $450 level has been resistance, I just think we’re going to try to grind back to the upside there.
F Technical Analysis Ford is at an interesting area, it’s a place that’s been very noisy previously, it does look like it’s trying to bounce at the $15 level, so I think it is probably going to be likely to see buyers if we get more risk opportunities out there and risk appetite present themselves. I think Ford will take advantage of it, more along the lines of a rising tide lifts all boats type of attitude here. I have no interest in shorting Ford at this point.
GM Technical Analysis GM is in the midst of trying to break out of a massive bullish flag that would measure for about $12 move, perhaps as high as $97. $97 is a far distance from here, I think this is a market that could very well continue to climb in that direction. You can see it’s been in a fairly reliable uptrend since the end of 2023 and again started to rally in the middle of 2025, so this is a market that I think, given enough time, does in fact take off to the upside. It may see a little bit of noise just above here, but once it breaks loose, it’s really going to take off.
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Chris is a proprietary trader with more than 20 years of experience across various markets, including currencies, indices and commodities. As a senior analyst at FXEmpire since the website’s early days, he offers readers advanced market perspectives to navigate today’s financial landscape with confidence.
Karl Brauer takes the wheel of conversations in the automotive space, talking about what drew investors to Ford (F) as the stock hits the brakes following a stellar rally in recent weeks. He then calls Telsa (TSLA) a "car company in transition" as CEO Elon Musk shifts focus toward AI and robotics.
Novelis said on Wednesday it had restarted production at its Oswego, New York facility, a plant key to Ford's F-150 pickup truck line, months after two fires halted operations.
An aluminum plant in upstate New York is back online after nine months, meaning relief could be on the way for Ford, General Motors, and other U.S. auto manufacturers.
In the latest trading session, Ford Motor Company (F - Free Report) closed at $14.30, marking a -4.35% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.62%. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 1.87%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1.98%.
Coming into today, shares of the company had gained 24.69% in the past month. In that same time, the Auto-Tires-Trucks sector lost 4.7%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.03%.
The upcoming earnings release of Ford Motor Company will be of great interest to investors. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $0.35, indicating a 5.41% decline compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $45.44 billion, down 3.21% from the prior-year quarter.
F's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $1.64 per share and revenue of $175.77 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +50.46% and +0.99%, respectively.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Ford Motor Company. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, upbeat changes in estimates indicate analysts' favorable outlook on the business health and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 3.86% increase. Ford Motor Company is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
From a valuation perspective, Ford Motor Company is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 9.13. This signifies a discount in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 19.66 for its industry.
It is also worth noting that F currently has a PEG ratio of 0.33. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Automotive - Domestic industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 0.93 as of yesterday's close.
The Automotive - Domestic industry is part of the Auto-Tires-Trucks sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 182, this industry ranks in the bottom 26% of all industries, numbering over 250.
The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
The blue Ford oval logo is displayed on the new Ford World Headquarters during its opening celebration in Dearborn, Michigan, U.S. November 16, 2025. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
CompaniesJune 11 (Reuters) - Ford (F.N), opens new tab is recalling 548,463 vehicles in the United States over an issue with the center console, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Thursday.
The issue relates to the console's chrome plating, which may bubble and peel over time, potentially resulting in sharp edges. Passengers who come in contact with these edges face an increased risk of injury, the regulator said.
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The recall, which affects certain 2018-2024 Ford Expedition vehicles, may have been caused by the center console chrome trim that was manufactured by a supplier using parameters that did not meet Ford specifications, the NHTSA said.
As a remedy, the dealers will inspect and replace the center consoles as necessary, free of charge, per the regulator.
Reporting by Angela Christy in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Years ago, when Ford Motor Company (F +0.88%) stopped producing sedans in the U.S. (other than the prized iconic Mustang, if you count that), it was a fairly logical move. At one time, the sedan market accounted for 50% of new-car sales, but that share has consistently declined to the mid-teens as America's appetite for larger SUVs and trucks has increased. At the time, Ford's profitability on sedans was questionable, so moving production capacity and capital investment to larger, more profitable vehicles made sense.
Fast-forward to today, and things have changed yet again. Ford is planning to get back into the sedan segment in the U.S., but why, and what does that mean for its bottom line?
Image source: Ford Motor Company.
What's going on with Ford? Ford spent many years away from producing lower-average-transaction-price (ATP) and more affordable compact cars, such as the Fiesta, Focus, and Fusion, in favor of higher-margin SUVs. That worked really well for Ford, and the company would go on to produce some of its most profitable years on record, including 2015, which was its all-time peak in net income driven by -- you guessed it -- surging F-Series and SUV sales.
Things have changed again, thanks in part to rising gasoline prices, but more importantly, new-car prices are hovering near $50,000 on average. That's created a U.S. consumer base screaming for more affordable options, opening the door for the folks at the Blue Oval to reconsider segments left in the rearview mirror.
What's Ford's plan? Here's what Andrew Frick, the president of Ford Blue and Model e, told Automotive News:
We have a really great Mustang that people consider a car. We look to expand on the Mustang family as we move forward. I think, for us to do it, it's going to have to make sense within our portfolio. It's going to have to make sense within a family that we may already offer. And it's going to have to be very cost-effective for us to do it.
It's important for investors to note that Ford isn't flipping the entire playbook. In Ford's attempt to attack the affordability crisis, it plans to launch five new vehicles priced below $40,000, and yes, one of those will be a traditional four-door car. It's possible the new sedan will be an all-electric four-door built on the company's Universal EV Platform, which will significantly reduce costs and enable better profitability at price ranges that were historically very challenging.
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What it all means for investors For investors worried about margin pressure due to reentering the sedan market, it shouldn't be the concern it once was. Ford is targeting 8% adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) margins by 2029, up from about 3.6% in 2025, as the company phases out less profitable models, increases the usage of its Universal EV Platform, grows scale with upcoming higher-volume and more affordable EVs, and more broadly brings down structural costs to be more in line with competitors.
The U.S. auto consumer is demanding more affordable options, and the market for sedans remains, creating an opportunity for Ford to adjust its product portfolio and find equilibrium while improving profitability. These are all good things for long-term investors.
Both Bank of America (NYSE: BAC | BAC Price Prediction) and Ford (NYSE: F) flashed bullish technical signals over the past few months, but which one is better in a retirement portfolio right now?
Douglas A. McIntyre is the co-founder, chief executive officer and editor in chief of 24/7 Wall St. and 24/7 Tempo. He has held these jobs since 2006.
McIntyre has written thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St. He is an expert on corporate finance, the automotive industry, media companies and international finance. He has edited articles on national demographics, sports, personal income and travel.
His work has been quoted or mentioned in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, NBC News, Time, The New Yorker, HuffPost USA Today, Business Insider, Yahoo, AOL, MarketWatch, The Atlantic, Bloomberg, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Forbes, The Guardian and many other major publications. McIntyre has been a guest on CNBC, the BBC and television and radio stations across the country.
A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College, McIntyre also was president of The Harvard Advocate. Founded in 1866, the Advocate is the oldest college publication in the United States.
TheStreet.com, Comps.com and Edgar Online are some of the public companies for which McIntyre served on the board of directors. He was a Vicinity Corporation board member when the company was sold to Microsoft in 2002. He served on the audit committees of some of these companies.
McIntyre has been the CEO of FutureSource, a provider of trading terminals and news to commodities and futures traders. He was president of Switchboard, the online phone directory company. He served as chairman and CEO of On2 Technologies, the video compression company that provided video compression software for Adobe’s Flash. Google bought On2 in 2009.
Key Takeaways Novelis restarted its Oswego hot mill after two 2025 fires disrupted aluminum sheet production.F's aluminum shortage cut F-Series inventory and halted several vehicle production lines.Ford estimates 100,000 lost trucks in 2025 and a $1.5B-$2B impact through 2026. Ford Motor Company’s (F - Free Report) primary aluminum supplier in New York has resumed operations at its hot mill following two fires last year that shut down the facility and contributed to billions of dollars in lost production for Ford’s highly profitable F-Series pickup lineup.
The Novelis facility in Oswego, NY, is the largest U.S.-based supplier of automotive-grade aluminum sheet. A fire on Sept. 16, 2025, halted the rolling line of Novelis that produced aluminum sheets, while a second fire on Nov. 20, 2025, caused further damage to both the rolling equipment and parts of the plant. The aluminum sheets manufactured there are used to produce vehicle components such as hoods, fenders and other exterior body panels.
The disruption had a significant impact on Ford, which relies on aluminum body construction for its F-150 pickup, the best-selling vehicle in the United States for decades. The resulting aluminum shortage reduced the automaker’s truck inventory levels at dealerships ahead of the typically strong summer selling season.
Per Ford spokesperson Dave Tovar, the restart marks an important step forward, but it also highlights the challenges many automotive suppliers continue to face. Ford remains focused on working closely with suppliers to strengthen long-term supply chain resilience.
Per Ford CEO Jim Farley, the company currently has a solid supply of finished aluminum. F-Series inventory stands at roughly a 50-day supply nationwide, which is somewhat below Ford’s preferred level for trucks, but production is ramping up steadily, and the company expects a strong performance in the second half of the year.
Ford uses lightweight aluminum in its truck bodies to help improve fuel efficiency. The Novelis fires forced Ford to temporarily suspend production of the all-electric F-150 Lightning at its Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn due to insufficient aluminum supplies. The company also briefly halted production of the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs at its Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville. In addition, the shortage constrained the output of the gasoline-powered F-150, which is assembled at Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant and Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri.
Overall, Ford estimates it lost approximately 100,000 units of truck production in 2025 because of the supply disruption. To recover from last year’s inventory shortfall, the automaker plans to build an additional 50,000 trucks this year, targeting total production of about 150,000 units.
Per Ford, the aluminum shortage and manufacturing disruptions caused by the fires are projected to have a financial impact of between $1.5 billion and $2 billion through 2026. 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.
How did the Novelis Outage Impact Its Other Customers?Stellantis N.V. (STLA - Free Report) was also affected by the Novelis fire, leading the automaker to temporarily suspend production of the Jeep Grand Wagoneer at its Warren, MI, assembly plant. The Wagoneer lineup relies extensively on aluminum components supplied by Novelis, including key body panels such as the hood and doors. As a result of the supply disruption, production at the Warren facility was halted on Oct. 13, 2025, and remained idle until operations resumed during the week of Nov. 3, 2025.
General Motors Company (GM - Free Report) experienced only limited disruption from the Novelis fire, largely due to the supply chain risk management practices it developed after the 2011 tsunami and Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan. That event exposed weaknesses in GM’s business continuity planning and prompted the company to adopt a more strategic approach to supply chain resilience. As a result, GM was better positioned to identify potential disruptions, assess supplier exposure and respond more effectively to supply chain challenges, helping it avoid the significant production impacts seen at some of its peers.
F’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates Ford has outperformed the Zacks Automotive-Domestic industry in the last six months. Its shares have gained 3.9% against the industry’s decline of 4.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation perspective, F appears undervalued. Going by its price/sales ratio, the company is trading at a forward sales multiple of 0.33, lower than the industry’s 3.48.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ford’s 2026 EPS has moved up 6 cents in the past 30 days, while for 2027 EPS, it has moved down a penny in the past 60 days.
Ford is recalling more than 548,000 vehicles over a center console defect that could cause injury to the occupants, according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The recall affects certain 2018-2024 Ford Expedition vehicles, the federal regulator said Thursday. A total of 548,463 vehicles are affected by the recall.
The center console's chrome plating may bubble and peel over time, potentially leading to sharp edges, the regulator said. Passengers who come into contact with the sharp edges face an increased risk of injury.
KIA RECALLS 6K VEHICLES DUE TO POSSIBLE SEAT BELT DEFECT THAT COULD RAISE INJURY RISK
Ford is recalling more than 548,000 vehicles over a center console defect that could cause injury to the occupants. (Getty Images / Getty Images)
"A customer may come in contact with the sharp edge of peeling chrome while driving, increasing the risk of injury," the NHTSA report reads.
The NHTSA said the defect may have been caused by the center console chrome trim that was manufactured by a supplier using parameters that failed to meet Ford's specifications.
The manufacturers listed in the regulator's report are automotive parts suppliers Xin Point and Forvia.
The recall affects certain 2018-2024 Ford Expedition vehicles. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images / Getty Images)
According to the recall report, Ford identified a trend in the NHTSA's Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQs) in September about the bubbling and peeling of chrome trim on the center console of 2019-2020 model-year Ford Expedition vehicles.
Ticker Security Last Change Change % F FORD MOTOR CO. 14.84 +0.13 +0.88% "Five of the six reported VOQs allege customer hand injuries from contact with the sharp edge of the peeling chrome trim," the report reads.
Ford said it is aware of one accident and 65 injuries in connection with this issue.
MORE THAN 1 MILLION JEEP VEHICLES RECALLED OVER FIRE RISK AS OWNERS WARNED NOT TO PARK INSIDE
Ford said it is aware of one accident and 65 injuries in connection with this issue. (Jeff Kowalsky/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
"Customer reports of hand and finger lacerations associated with this condition include a small number of instances stating that professional medical attention was required," the report says.
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Customers affected by the recall will be able to go to a Ford dealer to have their vehicles inspected and center consoles replaced as necessary at no cost.
Notification letters about the safety risk are expected to be mailed out on June 29.
Additional letters will be sent in January of next year "once the remedy is available," according to the NHTSA.
A Ford logo on a pickup truck for sale in Encinitas, California, U.S. October 20, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
CompaniesJune 12 (Reuters) - Ford (F.N), opens new tab is recalling 255,404 vehicles in the U.S. over an issue with the canister purge valve, which may malfunction, causing the engine to stall unexpectedly while driving, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Friday.
The recall affects certain 2012-2018 Focus vehicles which were previously repaired incorrectly, the regulator said.
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The dealers will update the powertrain control module doftware free of charge, as per NHTSA.
The regulator said the affected vehicles may be identified with an illuminated malfunction indicator light or customers may observe inaccurate fuel gauge indication.
Reporting by Angela Christy in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Mrigank Dhaniwala
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Key Takeaways Ford recalled 548,463 Expedition SUVs from model years 2018 to 2024 over peeling console chrome trim.Ford said out-of-spec manufacturing could cause trim separation and expose sharp edges.Ford received 4,634 warranty claims, 65 injury reports and one crash potentially linked to the defect. Ford Motor Company (F - Free Report) has issued a recall for 548,463 Expedition SUVs after identifying a defect that could cause the center console trim in certain 2018–2024 models to peel away, potentially exposing sharp edges. Occupants who come into contact with these edges may face a higher risk of injury. Per the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), approximately 12.8% of the affected vehicles are expected to have the defect.
Per the recall filing, the issue stems from chrome trim on the center console separating or peeling from its underlying material, which can create sharp surfaces. The chrome components were produced using manufacturing parameters that did not meet the company’s specifications.
As of June 2, 2026, the automaker had received 34 reports through its customer call centers, 150 field reports and 4,634 warranty claims worldwide that may be linked to the condition. Ford is also aware of one crash and 65 injury reports that could be associated with the defect.
To address the problem, owners will be asked to take their vehicles to authorized dealerships, where technicians will inspect the center console and replace any units showing signs of bubbling or peeling chrome with updated parts that meet Ford’s standards.
Ford has already notified dealers about the recall. Interim notification letters are scheduled to be mailed to owners beginning June 29, 2026, while final remedy notifications are expected to be sent by Jan. 29, 2027. 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.
Latest Recalls by Other AutomakersStellantis N.V. (STLA - Free Report) recently announced a recall affecting 1,076,999 vehicles in the United States after identifying a defect in the power steering system that could elevate the risk of a fire, per the NHTSA. The issue involves wiring connected to the electric hydraulic power steering pump, which may overheat and potentially ignite, even when a Stellantis vehicle is parked and the ignition is turned off. The Stellantis recall applies to certain 2021–2025 Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Gladiator models.
In May 2026, Lucid Group, Inc. (LCID - Free Report) recalled certain 2024-2025 Air vehicles in the United States, per NHTSA. The recall was prompted by a potential inverter defect in Lucid vehicles that could lead to damage and cause a loss of drive power. Lucid would deploy an over-the-air software update to evaluate the issue and replace affected inverters at no cost to owners.
F’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates Ford has outperformed the Zacks Automotive-Domestic industry in the last six months. Its shares have gained 7.8% against the industry’s decline of 11.4%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation perspective, F appears undervalued. Going by its price/sales ratio, the company is trading at a forward sales multiple of 0.33, lower than the industry’s 3.34.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ford’s 2026 and 2027 EPS has moved up 4 cents and 2 cents, respectively, in the past 30 days.
The 2012-18 models face a malfunctioning purge valve that can cause excessive vacuum and fuel tank deformation Ford announced a recall covering more than a quarter million Ford Focus vehicles over an issue that may cause the engine to stall unexpectedly.
The recall affects 255,404 Focus vehicles from the 2012-18 model years due to an issue with the canister purge valve (CPV). These vehicles were covered by a prior recall, but the correct software fix may not have been installed on the affected vehicles.
If the fix wasn't properly installed, the CPV may malfunction and stick open, with the powertrain control module (PCM) unable to adequately detect the stuck open CPV.
"A CPV that is stuck open during the evaporative leak monitor check can cause excessive vacuum in the fuel system of these vehicles. Excessive vacuum can result in deformation of the plastic fuel tank," the recall report said.
FORD ISSUES RECALL FOR MORE THAN 548,000 VEHICLES OVER ISSUE WITH CENTER CONSOLE
Ford's recall affects over 255,000 Ford Focus vehicles from the 2012-2018 model years. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Affected vehicles may trigger a malfunction indicator light, or drivers may observe an inaccurate fuel gauge indication, inaccurate distance to empty and/or have drivability concerns.
Ford flagged a concern with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) that it found discrepancies that showed the software fix may not have been successfully applied to all vehicles.
MORE THAN 1 MILLION JEEP VEHICLES RECALLED OVER FIRE RISK AS OWNERS WARNED NOT TO PARK INSIDE
Ticker Security Last Change Change % F FORD MOTOR CO. 14.83 +0.12 +0.78% The company then identified the subset of affected vehicles and issued a recall earlier this month. Ford isn't aware of any reports of accidents or injury related to the issue.
Owners of affected vehicles will be notified by mail and instructed to take their vehicle to a Ford or Lincoln dealer to have the PCM updated, with software parts to be validated before the process concludes.
FORD RECALLS NEARLY 420,000 EXPEDITION AND LINCOLN NAVIGATOR SUVS OVER SEAT BELT LOCKING ISSUE
Owners of recalled vehicles can take their vehicles to Ford and Lincoln dealerships for the software fix. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
There will be no charge for the service.
Ford approved a reimbursement plan for owners who paid to have the issue fixed prior to the May 2023 safety recall, and owners who paid out of their own expense to have repairs completed may be eligible for reimbursement.
The carmaker will follow Tesla in making large batteries used by electric utilities, data centers and other businesses to handle fluctuations in power supply and demand.
General Motors is expanding efforts to capitalize on the expected growth of energy storage and data centers by promoting different battery cell chemistries, while also offering more support for its electric vehicle owners to combat higher energy costs.
The Detroit automaker detailed plans Tuesday to increase its vehicle-to-grid capabilities — in which a vehicle can provide energy to the electric grid — for its EV customers and develop next-generation sodium-ion batteries that GM's battery leader said "will reshape grid-scale energy storage."
Both moves are meant to address concerns about rising energy costs amid an artificial intelligence boom. The stock market has speculated that vast sums of money will be spent on infrastructure to support a big data center buildout.
"Sodium-ion-powered energy storage systems have the potential to operate without active cooling and with much less system complexity," Kurt Kelty, GM's vice president of battery and sustainability, said Tuesday in a blog post. "In large energy storage systems, that matters."
Not having to cool the battery cells could lead to lower upfront costs as well as operating costs, the automaker said.
GM is partnering with Denver-based startup Peak Energy on sodium-ion battery cell development, after the company already demonstrated how the chemistry can "translate into lower costs and greater reliability," Kelty said.
The automaker expects the tie-up with Peak Energy will produce sodium-ion cells for customer use after 2028.
The leadership team of Peak Energy — which was founded in 2023 — includes former employees of Tesla, Lockheed Martin and battery developer Northvolt, according to its website.
A GM spokesman declined to comment on details or cost of the partnership with Peak Energy.
Along with developing new sodium-ion battery cells, GM said it is continuing work on reusing its large EV batteries for energy storage systems with companies such as Redwood Materials and producing lower-cost lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, battery cells through a joint venture with LG Energy Solution.
LFP batteries are viewed as a quick way for companies to take advantage of existing battery capacity, while GM said it sees the sodium-ion battery cells as a future solution for such systems.
"Our next-generation sodium-ion cell development will drive energy density higher, with the potential to outperform more mature chemistries, including LFP, over time. In a market increasingly shaped by cost pressure, energy demand growth, and geopolitical risk, that's a real differentiator," Kelty said.
GM has spent billions of dollars in recent years to increase its research and development as well as battery cell production for exponential growth of all-electric vehicles that did not materialize as planned.
GM, through its Ultium Cells joint venture, currently has about 90 gigawatt hours of production capacity at two plants, one in Ohio and one in Tennessee. Ultium Cells in March announced a $70 million investment to begin producing LFP batteries for energy storage systems at the Tennessee plant.
watch now
Other automakers, including GM crosstown rival Ford Motor, have shifted to focus on energy storage to assist in filling capacity at multibillion-dollar battery plants in the U.S.
For GM customers, the ability to have an EV be capable of sending energy back to the grid during peak hours, or to power their home, through an energy storage system from the Detroit automaker could help with reducing energy costs and grid usage.
GM said it is seeking partnerships with utility companies nationwide to assist in offering such vehicle-to-grid services for customers. It's already working with utility companies in California and Michigan.
Residential electricity prices in the U.S. have risen by nearly 48% since January 2020, from 12.76 cents per kilowatt-hour to 18.83 cents per kilowatt-hour in March 2026, and are expected to rise to around 19 cents per kilowatt-hour starting in March 2027, according to a recent forecast by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
GM on Tuesday also announced an "Energy Pass" that targets more seamless public charging for its EV customers, including when using Tesla Superchargers, and said all of the all-electric vehicles it produces as of the 2027 model year will include a North American Charging Standard charging port.
GM wants to commercialize sodium-ion battery cells for large-scale energy storage by 2028.
General Motors
Months after slashing its lofty electric vehicle goals, General Motors is intensifying its focus on energy technology to keep up with data center needs for electricity. Now, it’s announced plans to develop a cheaper, more durable battery for large-scale energy storage.
The Detroit-based automaker is working with startup Peak Energy to develop a sodium-ion battery, aiming to commercialize it by 2028. Its goal is to leapfrog the dominant battery cell tech used for energy storage packs right now — LFP (lithium-iron phosphate), which is dominated by China. Sodium batteries are cheaper to use than LFP because they don’t need an additional cooling system. They also have a 20-year usable life and are made from materials that can be sourced from within the U.S., the company said at a briefing in San Francisco on Tuesday.
“Sodium-ion actually is the better chemistry for that application. And when I say sodium-ion is better, I mean GM’s version of sodium-ion,” Kurt Kelty, GM’s battery chief and a long-time Tesla battery executive, told Forbes. He said GM is seeing great results from its prototypes, even at scorching temperatures of 55 Celsius (131 Fahrenheit).
“The competitors just can’t handle that heat, whereas our cells will. What that gets you is the ability to deploy an energy storage system without active cooling,” he said. So even though sodium cells will cost more than LFP, they’re much cheaper to use: at least 20% cheaper when installed.
GM has been scrambling to monetize battery R&D that previously focused on electric vehicles after the Trump administration killed consumer EV rebates and manufacturing programs last year. Those initiatives, pushed by President Joe Biden, were intended to reduce automotive carbon emissions and help U.S. carmakers better compete with China, the world’s EV and battery leader. Rival Ford is working with China’s CATL, the world’s largest battery maker, to produce LFP packs for the grid at U.S. plants, and GM also makes LFP batteries with South Korea’s LG Energy Solution. But when it comes to energy storage, GM sees greater longer-term potential for sodium, once it’s fully developed.
Large-scale production of sodium cells won’t happen for at least two years, the company said. Over time, sodium-ion batteries may also end up in EVs, though for now the focus is on grid packs, Kelty said. The company is also planning to produce a new lithium manganese-rich battery for large pickups and SUVs that’s due in 2028.
Even though the company downshifted its focus away from EVs, GM said it already has the largest number of EVs on the road, some 250,000, that are capable of bi-directional charging. That means they can send power back to the grid when needed. These vehicles can be used as a backup power source for homes during blackouts, but there’s also increasing interest in utilities being able to pull electricity from EV batteries when grid demands spike. GM already has a program with California’s PG&E to test that out.
“Our grid desperately needs EVs, particularly bi-directional EVs, that we can optimize and contribute to the grid,” Patti Poppe, CEO of utility PG&E, said at the GM event. “It’s the first flexible demand there’s ever been. EVs can charge at the optimal time and then provide supply back to the grid.”
GM says it has the most EVs on the road capable of bi-directional charging.
General Motors
The San Francisco-based utility offers a $4,500 rebate to GM’s EV owners who install smart charging equipment. This can pull power from the vehicles during high-demand periods.
Sterling Anderson, GM’s chief product officer, said that the ability to trade power back and forth between electric vehicles and utilities could expand across the U.S. and potentially offer new ways to make EVs more affordable to own.
“What if the utility effectively owns or leases back the battery?” he said. “So you buy an EV, but you pay less for the EV because you didn’t actually just buy the battery. And the utility is effectively recouping its investments in the bidirectional charging that it's getting from your car.”
That’s not happening yet. But it’s a creative way to“meaningfully drive adoption of EVs,” he said.
More From ForbesForbesThis Google Spinout Thinks AI Can Fix America’s EV Battery ProblemBy Alan OhnsmanForbesTesla’s Best Growth Story Isn’t Robotaxis—It’s BatteriesBy Alan Ohnsman
GM plans to revamp its energy business and place a big bet on sodium-ion batteries just as shares of rival Ford got a boost from a similar move a few weeks ago.
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GM said it has 250,000 EVs on US roads that could be turned into an energy source for power grids. Courtesy General Motors General Motors wants to use the parked EV in your garage to power the energy grid and potentially lower your utility bills.
The legacy automaker is pitching EV batteries as a power source that could help utility companies manage surging electricity demand, as households see rate increases and the US sees historic levels of energy consumption amid the AI data center build-out.
In an open letter to utility executives and energy lawmakers on Tuesday, GM called on utility agencies, regulators, and automakers for a "public-private collaboration" that could make it easier for EV drivers to send power back to the grid. Stakeholders would work out logistics like customer enrollment, incentives, and rate structures, the company said.
"The growth and consumption of electricity in the US has been at historic highs," Kurt Kelty, GM's vice president of battery and sustainability, told Business Insider. "We've never had such a high growth rate in electricity for probably a hundred years or so. That's partly being driven by the AI data center growth."
The US Energy Information Administration said in January that it expects electricity use to rise 1% this year and 3% in 2027, marking the strongest four-year stretch of demand growth since 2000. The agency said "demand from large computing centers" was behind the surge.
A Business Insider analysis of US data center permits found that if all facilities permitted through 2025 came online, they could consume between 224.3 terawatt-hours and 358.8 terawatt-hours of electricity a year. At the midpoint, that's more than the total electricity use by any US state outside Texas in 2024.
To ease grid demand, GM said it could leverage bidirectional charging technology, which allows power to flow into and out of the EV. The company said it has more than 250,000 bidirectional EVs on US roads and is committed to building that capability across its entire EV portfolio.
With a quarter of a million EVs, GM said that amounts to power for about 120,000 homes for up to one week or all of San Francisco for one day.
GM's energy home system Courtesy of GM Kelty described the future customer experience as a kind of "buy low, sell high" scenario for electricity.
A driver could come home from work, plug in, and let the EV discharge power during peak demand times, such as late afternoon or evening. Then the car could recharge later at night, when electricity is cheaper.
Kelty added that this process wouldn't happen every day and that utility companies may only need the extra support 20 or 30 days out of the year. The EV would also not be fully discharged each time.
"It's not that much extra wear and tear on the battery," he said, adding that the battery would still be covered under warranty as long as customers followed a GM-specific program.
Whether customers will see returns through credits, lower utility bills, or a cheaper EV at initial purchase is all on the table, Kelty said.
The idea is still in its early phases. GM said it's now testing "vehicle-to-grid" programs with utility agencies, including PG&E in northern California and DTE Energy in Michigan.
Tesla has a similar concept with Powershare, which allows Cybertruck owners to use the truck's battery to power a home and, in some regions, support the grid. However, the technology is currently only centered on the Cybertruck.
"The big thing we're looking at is we want to sell more EVs," Kelty said. "We want to reduce fossil fuel consumption. That's the direction we want to go."
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General Motors is releasing a software update that allows some U.S. electric-vehicle owners to pipe power back to the electric grid, another example of car companies pursuing business opportunities in the energy sector.
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General Motors is leaning into alternative uses for EV battery technology, joining a growing number of automakers looking beyond vehicle sales for growth. Shares aren’t getting a Ford Motor-like boost, though.
General Motors GM is pushing into stationary electricity storage through a partnership with Peak Energy Technologies, a young battery startup focused on sodium-ion technology. The move could give GM a new route into one of the hottest power markets tied to the AI boom, as data centers place heavier pressure on the electric grid and investors look for new winners beyond traditional EV growth.
GM and Peak plan to build grid-scale batteries that can store electricity during off-peak hours and release it when utilities and major power users need it most. GM is also working to let more of its existing EVs send power back to the grid when plugged in at home, turning vehicles that sit idle 95% of the time into possible distributed energy assets. The company is taking an undisclosed equity stake in Peak through GM Ventures, while future production could happen at an existing GM facility or through a joint manufacturing plant.
The timing matters. GM and Ford F have spent tens of billions of dollars building EV programs, only to face slower US consumer adoption than expected. Ford has already attracted investor attention after a Wall Street analyst framed its $2 billion energy-storage push as a possible AI beneficiary, while GM is now leaning into a smaller but potentially expandable strategy. Peak expects $10 million in revenue this year, $100 million in 2027, and is backed by a $1.1 billion backlog. With US grid-battery demand expected to double by 2030 to more than 100 gigawatt-hours, GM's energy-storage pivot could become a new way to reuse its battery expertise while softening the blow from a still-money-losing EV business.
The GM logo is displayed at the new location of the General Motors Headquarters in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., January 12, 2026. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
CompaniesSAN FRANCISCO, June 10 (Reuters) - General Motors (GM.N), opens new tab may scrap plans to use a lower-cost, iron-based battery chemistry that many automakers are using to cut electric-vehicle costs, GM's head of battery technology said.
The Detroit automaker had said it planned to develop lithium-iron phosphate, or LFP, batteries for use in future EV models, and would begin making those batteries in late 2027 at a jointly owned plant in Tennessee.
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But GM battery chief Kurt Kelty told Reuters that GM instead is focused on developing a different battery chemistry, lithium manganese-rich, or LMR, which the company has said costs about the same as LFP to make in the U.S., but can store more energy for the same weight and size.
Kelty said GM may no longer pursue LFP for use in EVs. He said the Tennessee factory will start production this month of LFP cells, but those are for energy storage systems.
"There is a possibility where LFP does not earn its way into our portfolio," Kelty said following a GM event in San Francisco on Tuesday, calling LMR the "workhorse" for GM. "That's where we're going to be using the big volume," he said.
GM has been working on LMR for over a decade. Its crosstown rival, Ford Motor (F.N), opens new tab, last year said it was working to scale LMR chemistry for use in future EVs.
Despite the chemistry's advantages, including reducing reliance on critical minerals, technical challenges such as the battery weakening with use mean mass adoption is not expected anytime soon, opens new tab, S&P Global said last year.
RIVALS EMBRACE LFP CHEMISTRYBypassing LFP would mark a significant departure from the battery strategies of many of GM’s competitors.
Chinese carmakers pioneered the use of the lower-cost LFP chemistry, which is less dense – resulting in shorter driving ranges – but also cheaper and considered safer and more durable than the nickel-rich batteries used by many U.S. and European automakers.
Many global automakers, including Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab, Rivian (RIVN.O), opens new tab and Ford Motor (F.N), opens new tab, have added LFP-based EVs to cut costs and offer more-affordable electric options as demand for battery-powered cars slows in the U.S.
GM has released more than a dozen U.S. EVs over the past few years, all using a more powerful nickel-rich chemistry. But its recently launched Chevrolet Bolt, its least expensive EV for the U.S. market, uses LFP cells from Chinese battery giant CATL, Reuters and other media outlets have reported.
GM said last year its goal was to start commercial production of LMR cells at a U.S. facility in 2028. Kelty did not confirm if that date is still the goal, but said LMR "is on schedule with development."
Reporting by Abhirup Roy in San Francisco and Kalea Hall in Detroit; Editing by Mike Colias and Matthew Lewis
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Abhirup Roy is a U.S. autos correspondent based in San Francisco, covering Tesla and the wider electric and autonomous vehicle industry. He previously reported from India on global corporations, capital markets regulation, white-collar crime, and corporate litigation. Contact him at (415) 941-8665 or connect securely via Signal on abhiruproy.10
Kalea Hall reports on the automotive industry, focusing on the Detroit Three automakers, from Detroit. Kalea was previously an automotive reporter at The Detroit News daily newspaper where she covered the auto industry and General Motors for more than five years. She’s been a professional reporter since 2013, when she started at The Vindicator, a daily newspaper in Youngstown, Ohio and her hometown paper. Growing up in an auto plant town inspired Kalea to deeply understand the industry, and helped her report award-winning stories for The Vindicator. At The Detroit News, she worked collaboratively with a team to break news and write comprehensive pieces. Kalea has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Point Park University in Pittsburgh and a master’s degree in journalism from Michigan State University.
