Business: Profit or Loss

Ford Motor Co. mails dividend checks to only three stockholders—Henry Ford, his son Edsel and Edsel’s wife, Eleanor. Because it has no other stockholders to coddle, the company does not publish an income statement and the public cannot know exactly what Ford’s earnings are. Only clue to the firm’s profits & losses is the balance sheet it is required to file each year in Massachusetts. Last week the report for 1937 was filed and the public’s annual guessing game got under way. Majority guess: Although Ford produced 1,314,369 cars & trucks (10% more than in 1936), profit & loss surplus increased only $5,419,264 (72% less than the 1936 increase); this, offset by a sharp $8,514,335 dip in reserves, indicated that in 1937 Ford Motor Co. (not considering possible dividend payments) lost $3,095,071, compared to a $26,426,698 profit the year before.

Balance sheets for the last three years (in millions of dollars) : Assets 1937 1936 1935

Real Estate $122.3 $123.2 $141.0

Mach., equip., etc. 125.6 118.5 91.5

Inventories 135.9 95.0 68.5

Cash, etc.* 317.3 378.1 377.3

Deferred Charges 3.5 2.4 3.1

Total $704.9 $717.3 $681.5

Liabilities

Capital Stock $17.2 $17.2 $17.2

Accts. payable, etc. 70.3 79.7 70.3

Reserve, etc. 9.1 17.6 10.9

P & L Surplus 608.0 602.6 582.9

Total $704.9 $717.3 $681.5

*Includes accounts and notes receivable, securities, patent rights, trademarks, etc.