It may be April Fools Day, but today may seem more like seesaw day for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA).
On the one side, high up in the air, is Jeep, Dodge and Ram March sales.
On the other, jamming down the seesaw against the ground, is Fiat and Chrysler sales.
And overall, FCA investors didn’t seem to like the ride as the automaker’s stock slipped nearly five percent Friday.
For the month, FCA posted an 8% sales gain in the US across all its brands, lower than Wall Street estimates. Once again, Jeep led the way with a 15% gain for the month – its best March ever - followed by Dodge (11%) and Ram (11%).
“Strong Jeep and Ram brand sales gave us a fast start to the important spring selling season and extended our year-over-year monthly sales gains to six full years,” said Reid Bigland, senior vice president of sales for FCA North America, in a statement. "As consumers continue to shift their buying preference towards utility vehicles and trucks, they are walking directly into the FCA wheelhouse."
The strong March sales for Jeep also marked the brand’s 30th straight month of year-over-year sales gains. Wrangler, Cherokee, and Renegade all posted their best March sales ever, while the Grand Cherokee saw its best sales month in 10 years.
Sales of Fiat (24% down) and Chrysler (11% down) vehicles continued to disappoint for the automaker, further justifying FCA’s push away from automobiles and towards the SUV/truck market.
