Ford Motor Co vs Li Auto Inc., two Auto Manufacturers stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Ford and Li Auto sit at opposite ends of the auto-maker spectrum: a 120-year-old US legacy manufacturer through a loss-making year, and a young profitable Chinese EV maker still scaling. Ford posts a negative 3.75% net margin, warranty and EV-transition costs dragging it into the red, though its 16.6% free-cash figure (finance-arm-flavored) and 5.3% dividend show cash still flows. Li Auto nets a thin 1% but stays positive, at 150.6 times earnings, priced for volume growth. Ford has no clean P/E this year; Li carries light debt, Ford's finance-arm leverage is hidden by the 0 shown. The pair prices a legacy giant in a rough patch against a Chinese EV upstart; Ford pays you to wait through its transition, Li asks you to pay for its growth.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | F | LI |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $14.10 | $12.05 |
| Market cap | $57.4B | $25.8B |
| Sector | Auto Manufacturers | Auto Manufacturers |
| Stage | Mature | Growth |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +18.1% | +10.7% |
| P/E | — | 150.6 |
| P/B | 1.53 | 2.47 |
| P/S | 0.30 | 1.61 |
| EV/EBITDA | 4.5 | 32.4 |
| Revenue growth | +4.0% | +53.8% |
| Gross margin | — | 18.7% |
| Operating margin | 5.4% | -0.5% |
| Net margin | -3.8% | 1.0% |
| Return on equity | -19.0% | 1.6% |
| Return on assets | -2.5% | 0.7% |
| Return on invested capital | -16.7% | -0.6% |
| FCF yield | 16.6% | -7.1% |
| Dividend yield | 5.3% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 0.13 |
| Current ratio | 1.09 | 1.81 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 1.00 | 2.56 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 2 / 9 |
Each week boothcheck ranks the stocks whose prices are betting on the most. Read the most stretched bets archive →
boothcheck is also on Android. Get the app on Google Play →
The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.