Business Design
Who owns Ford? Discover how the Ford family maintains control of the iconic automaker through special voting shares despite owning less than 2% of equity.
The Ford Motor Company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol F, but when people ask "who owns Ford," the answer reveals one of the most unusual ownership structures in corporate America. While the Ford family owns less than 2% of the company's equity, they control approximately 40% of the voting power through a special class of shares. This arrangement allows the descendants of founder Henry Ford to maintain significant influence over the automaker he established in 1903, even as millions of shares trade on public markets daily.
This dual-class structure makes Ford unique among major American automakers. General Motors and Stellantis (formerly Fiat Chrysler) operate with standard one-share-one-vote structures, while Ford's Class B shares give the founding family outsized control. Understanding who owns Ford requires looking beyond simple equity percentages to examine voting rights, institutional investors, and the family members who still guide this 120-year-old company.
Ford Motor Company operates with two classes of common stock: Class A shares and Class B shares. The Class A shares trade publicly on the NYSE and represent the overwhelming majority of Ford's equity. As of the most recent proxy filings, approximately 3.93 billion Class A shares were outstanding. These shares carry one vote per share and are held by institutional investors, retail investors, and index funds.
The Class B shares, by contrast, are exclusively held by Ford family members and the trusts established for their benefit. Roughly 70.9 million Class B shares are outstanding, representing just 1.8% of total equity ownership. However, each Class B share carries 16 votes compared to one vote for Class A shares. This voting structure grants the Ford family approximately 40% of the total voting power in shareholder elections.
The company's market capitalization fluctuates with stock price movements but has ranged between $35 billion and $60 billion in recent years. At current valuations, the Ford family's equity stake is worth approximately $1 billion to $2 billion, depending on share prices. However, their voting control is worth far more in terms of strategic influence.
No single Ford family member holds a controlling stake individually. Instead, the Class B shares are distributed among roughly 100 Ford family descendants through various family trusts and direct holdings. The largest individual stakeholder is typically William Clay Ford Jr., who serves as Executive Chair of the Board and holds his shares both directly and through family trusts.
The Class B share structure was implemented to preserve family control while allowing Ford to access public capital markets. These super-voting shares are restricted: they cannot be sold to non-family members and automatically convert to regular Class A shares if transferred outside the family bloodline. This mechanism ensures that voting control remains with Henry Ford's descendants indefinitely, barring a voluntary family decision to relinquish it.
Each Class B share carries 16 votes compared to one vote for a Class A share. This means that the Ford family's 70.9 million Class B shares generate approximately 1.13 billion votes, while the 3.93 billion publicly traded Class A shares generate 3.93 billion votes. Combined, the family controls roughly 22% of total votes through this structure. However, when accounting for the family's additional Class A holdings and the fact that not all public shareholders vote, the family's effective voting power often exceeds 40% in key shareholder decisions.
The Board of Directors consists of 14 members, with the Ford family typically holding 2-3 board seats. William Clay Ford Jr. serves as Executive Chair, providing direct family oversight of strategic decisions. Other board members include independent directors, former executives, and industry experts. While the family doesn't control the board through seat count, their voting power gives them effective veto power over major corporate actions.
This structure has proven resilient through decades of market changes. The family has shown willingness to support professional management while maintaining ultimate control over strategic direction. During Ford's near-bankruptcy in 2006, the family backed the decision to mortgage virtually all company assets to secure financing, demonstrating their long-term commitment despite short-term risks.
Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company on June 16, 1903, with $28,000 in capital from 12 investors. Ford himself owned 255 of the company's initial 1,000 shares. By 1906, Henry Ford had acquired majority control, and by 1919, he and his son Edsel Ford owned 100% of the company after buying out other shareholders.
The company remained entirely family-owned until 1956, when Ford went public in one of the largest IPOs in history at that time. The offering sold 10.2 million shares at $64.50 per share, raising approximately $658 million. The decision to go public was driven partly by estate tax obligations from the death of Edsel Ford in 1943 and Henry Ford in 1947. Their estates held massive Ford stock positions, and the family needed liquidity to pay inheritance taxes without losing control of the company.
The 1956 IPO introduced the dual-class share structure that persists today. The Ford family retained Class B shares with enhanced voting rights, while public investors received Class A common stock. This arrangement allowed the family to raise capital while preserving decision-making authority over the company bearing their name.
Throughout the latter half of the 20th century, the Ford family maintained this control through multiple generations. Edsel Ford II, Henry Ford II, and William Clay Ford Sr. each played significant roles in company governance. The family demonstrated their influence during critical moments, including the hiring and firing of CEOs and the decision to mortgage company assets during the 2008 financial crisis.
In 2001, William Clay Ford Jr. became the first family member to serve as CEO since his great-uncle Henry Ford II stepped down in 1979. He led the company through challenging times before handing the CEO role to Alan Mulally in 2006, though he remained Executive Chairman. This transition demonstrated the family's pragmatism in bringing in outside leadership when necessary.
While the Ford family controls voting power, institutional investors own the vast majority of Ford's equity. The largest institutional shareholders typically include major index fund managers and investment firms. As of the most recent 13F filings, the top institutional holders are:
| Institution | Shares Held (millions) | Percentage of Class A | Approximate Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vanguard Group | 330.5 | 8.4% | $3.8 billion |
| BlackRock | 265.3 | 6.7% | $3.0 billion |
| State Street Corporation | 178.9 | 4.5% | $2.0 billion |
| Geode Capital Management | 71.2 | 1.8% | $810 million |
| Northern Trust Corporation | 50.8 | 1.3% | $580 million |
These institutional investors hold Ford shares primarily through index funds that track major market indices like the S&P 500. Vanguard's holdings, for instance, are spread across hundreds of funds including the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund and the Vanguard 500 Index Fund. These passive investors generally don't attempt to influence company strategy but vote their shares on proxy matters.
Active investment managers also hold significant positions. Dimensional Fund Advisors, various hedge funds, and sovereign wealth funds maintain Ford holdings based on their investment strategies. Unlike passive index funds, these investors may engage more directly with management on governance issues, environmental initiatives, or capital allocation decisions.
The institutional ownership concentration means that a relatively small number of firms control the majority of publicly traded shares. However, their voting power is diluted by the Ford family's Class B shares. Even if all institutional investors united on a proxy vote, they would struggle to override family preferences on key decisions.
Retail investors, including individual shareholders and smaller investment accounts, own approximately 15-20% of Ford's outstanding Class A shares. These holdings are distributed across millions of individual accounts, making retail shareholders a diffuse and generally passive ownership group.
The Ford family's ability to control the company while owning less than 2% of equity represents one of corporate America's most enduring examples of dual-class share structures. This arrangement has faced scrutiny from governance advocates who argue that all shareholders should have equal voting rights proportional to their economic stake.
The Class B share structure includes several provisions that maintain family control across generations. First, the shares automatically convert to Class A shares if sold or transferred to non-family members. This prevents the family from monetizing their voting control by selling it to outside parties. Second, the shares are typically held in family trusts with provisions that encourage long-term holdings and prevent individual family members from unilaterally converting or selling.
The Ford family has approximately 100 members spanning multiple generations. Managing consensus among this large group requires internal governance structures. The family maintains a family council that meets regularly to discuss Ford-related matters and coordinate voting on major issues. This helps prevent fragmentation and ensures the family speaks with a unified voice on critical decisions.
The arrangement benefits Ford Motor Company in several ways. The family's long-term perspective allows management to make strategic decisions without excessive focus on quarterly earnings. During the 2008 automotive crisis, the Ford family supported management's decision to forgo government bailout funds, protecting the brand but requiring painful restructuring. This decision required patient capital willing to endure short-term losses for long-term independence.
Critics argue that this structure entrenches family control regardless of performance. If professional managers make poor decisions, the family's voting power prevents activist investors from forcing changes. The counterargument is that the family's wealth is heavily concentrated in Ford stock, aligning their interests with long-term company success. A Ford family member's personal fortune rises and falls with company performance, creating natural accountability.
William Clay Ford Jr., known as Bill Ford, represents the current generation of Ford family leadership. Born in 1957, he is the great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford and has served as Executive Chair since 1999. His role involves overseeing company strategy, representing the family's interests, and serving as a bridge between professional management and family shareholders.
Bill Ford's relationship with CEO Jim Farley, who took the helm in October 2020, exemplifies the modern partnership between family oversight and professional management. Farley, a veteran auto executive who previously worked at Toyota and Lexus before joining Ford, handles day-to-day operations and strategic execution. Ford provides board leadership, focuses on long-term vision, and ensures family stakeholders remain aligned with company direction.
Under this leadership structure, Ford Motor Company has pursued aggressive electrification strategies. The company committed over $50 billion to EV development through 2026, launched the successful F-150 Lightning electric truck, and created Ford Model e as a separate business unit focused on electric vehicles. These moves represent significant strategic shifts that required family support, as they involve substantial capital investment with uncertain near-term returns.
Bill Ford's personal passion for sustainability and environmental issues has influenced company strategy. He has championed carbon neutrality goals, sustainable manufacturing practices, and partnerships with environmental organizations. This represents a departure from the pure profitability focus of earlier eras and demonstrates how family values can shape corporate priorities.
Other Ford family members maintain lower public profiles but serve important governance roles. Edsel Ford II, Bill Ford's cousin, served on the board until 2021 and remains a significant family shareholder. The family's next generation, including Bill Ford's children, are being prepared for potential future leadership roles through education, business experience outside Ford, and gradual exposure to company governance.
The family's continued engagement stands in contrast to other founder families who have gradually reduced involvement in their namesake companies. The Dodge brothers' descendants, for instance, have no involvement in Dodge brand decisions under Stellantis ownership. The Ford family's active participation ensures institutional memory and continuity that purely professional management cannot provide.
For public investors considering Ford stock, understanding the ownership structure is essential for evaluating investment risks and potential returns. Ford's Class A common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol F. The stock pays a dividend when the company is profitable and has been a staple of income-oriented portfolios for decades.
The dual-class structure means that public shareholders have limited ability to influence major corporate decisions. In proxy votes, the Ford family's 40% voting control can determine outcomes on board elections, executive compensation, and major corporate actions. This reduces the effectiveness of shareholder activism and limits the power of institutional investors to force strategic changes.
From a valuation perspective, some analysts argue that Ford's stock trades at a discount compared to pure one-share-one-vote companies. This "governance discount" reflects the reduced power of public shareholders. Research on dual-class structures generally shows that companies with super-voting shares trade at 5-15% discounts compared to similar companies with equal voting rights. However, Ford's discount may be offset by the stability and long-term thinking that family control provides.
Ford's dividend history reflects its cyclical business model. The company suspended dividends during the 2008 financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, but has historically maintained quarterly payouts during profitable periods. The dividend yield has ranged from 0% during suspensions to over 5% during periods of high profitability and low stock prices.
The stock's volatility tends to exceed the broader market due to the cyclical nature of automotive sales, commodity price fluctuations, and the capital-intensive transformation to electric vehicles. Share prices have ranged from below $5 during crisis periods to over $20 during automotive boom times. Long-term shareholders have experienced significant price swings alongside dividend income.
Public investors should also consider that the Ford family's control could facilitate a company sale or major transaction without requiring approval from a majority of Class A shareholders. While the family has shown no inclination toward such moves, their concentrated voting power means they could theoretically approve a merger, acquisition, or going-private transaction that public shareholders oppose.
Ford's ownership structure differs significantly from its American and international competitors. General Motors operates with a single class of common stock, giving all shareholders equal voting rights per share. The U.S. government owned a majority stake in GM following the 2009 bankruptcy and bailout but sold its final shares in 2013. Today, GM has dispersed ownership with institutional investors holding the majority of shares and no controlling shareholder.
Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, and Ram brands, formed through the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and France's PSA Group. The Agnelli family, through their holding company Exor, maintains significant influence over Stellantis, owning approximately 14% of equity. However, unlike Ford's structure, this influence comes through direct equity ownership rather than super-voting shares. The Peugeot family also retains influence through the Peugeot Family Group's holdings.
Among foreign automakers, Volkswagen Group has a complex ownership structure where the Porsche and Piëch families control 53% of voting rights through a holding company while owning only 31% of equity. Lower Saxony, a German state, owns another 20% of shares with 20% of voting rights. This arrangement shares similarities with Ford's structure, showing that dual-class shares are not unique to American companies.
Toyota Motor Corporation, the world's largest automaker by production volume, operates with standard share voting but maintains founding family influence. The Toyota family, descendants of founder Kiichiro Toyoda, own less than 1% of equity but maintain cultural and strategic influence through family members in senior leadership positions. Akio Toyoda, the founder's grandson, served as president from 2009 to 2023 and remains chairman.
BMW is controlled by the Quandt family, who own approximately 47% of the company through direct holdings. Like Ford, this founding family has maintained multi-generational control, but through traditional equity ownership rather than super-voting shares. The Quandt family's equity stake gives them direct control proportional to their economic interest.
The comparison reveals different philosophies about balancing family control, public ownership, and governance. Ford's approach maximizes family influence while minimizing their capital at risk. The trade-off is the governance discount and potential shareholder opposition to entrenched control without corresponding economic stake.
What percentage of Ford does the Ford family own?
The Ford family owns approximately 1.8% of Ford Motor Company's total equity through Class B shares. However, these special shares carry 16 votes each compared to one vote for regular shares, giving the family approximately 40% of total voting power. This allows them to control major corporate decisions despite their small equity stake.
Is Ford still a family-owned company?
Ford is not family-owned in the traditional sense, as approximately 98% of equity is publicly traded. However, it is family-controlled through the dual-class share structure. The Ford family maintains significant influence over strategic decisions, board elections, and major corporate actions through their super-voting Class B shares, making them the controlling shareholders despite their minority equity position.
How does Ford's dual-class share structure work?
Ford has two classes of common stock: Class A shares trade publicly with one vote per share, while Class B shares are exclusively held by Ford family members and carry 16 votes per share. Class B shares automatically convert to Class A shares if sold or transferred outside the family, preventing the family from selling control to outsiders. This structure has been in place since Ford's 1956 IPO.
Who is the current CEO of Ford Motor Company?
Jim Farley has served as President and CEO of Ford Motor Company since October 1, 2020. Farley is not a Ford family member but a career automotive executive who previously worked at Toyota and joined Ford in 2007. William Clay Ford Jr. serves as Executive Chair of the Board, providing family oversight while Farley manages daily operations.
Can I buy Ford Class B shares as a regular investor?
No, Ford Class B shares are not available to public investors and can only be held by Ford family members and designated family trusts. The shares automatically convert to regular Class A shares if transferred to non-family members. Public investors can only purchase Class A common stock, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol F.
Ford Motor Company's ownership structure represents a unique balance between public markets and family control. While millions of investors own Ford stock through retirement accounts, mutual funds, and direct holdings, the Ford family's Class B shares give Henry Ford's descendants decisive influence over the company's direction. This arrangement has endured for nearly 70 years since the 1956 IPO, surviving market crashes, near-bankruptcy, and dramatic industry transformation.
The dual-class structure has advantages and disadvantages. It provides stability, long-term strategic thinking, and continuity that quarterly-focused public markets might not otherwise permit. The Ford family's commitment during the 2008 crisis, when they supported mortgaging virtually all company assets rather than accepting government bailouts, demonstrated the value of patient capital. However, the structure also means public shareholders have limited recourse if they disagree with family-supported strategies or management decisions.
As Ford navigates the electric vehicle transition and invests tens of billions in new technologies, the family's role remains crucial. Bill Ford Jr.'s support for aggressive electrification, despite uncertain returns, shows how family control enables bold strategic pivots. Whether this governance model ultimately benefits all shareholders will depend on the success of these expensive transformations. For now, the answer to "who owns Ford" remains clear: public investors own most of the equity, but the Ford family controls the company.
