Ford Motor's revenue fell in the second quarter amid declining U.S. sales. The automaker is nonetheless upbeat about the auto industry.

The Dearborn, Mich., company on Tuesday raised its full-year profit forecast and said it is confident Americans would continue to buy pricey, big pickups and sport-utility vehicles that dominate its lineup.

"We play only where we have real competitive advantage, or we can build one, and we're ruthless about where we put our money," said Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley in a call Tuesday with analysts. "Every dollar must earn durable returns and drive profitable growth."

Ford shares were up 7% in after-hours trading following its second-quarter financial results Tuesday. The automaker raised its full-year outlook on earnings before interest and taxes to between $10 billion and $11 billion, up from $8.5 billion to $10.5 billion.

Ford's sales in the first half of 2026 were down nearly 10% compared with a year prior. The automaker continues to recover from a supplier fire that significantly affected pickup production while fewer Americans overall are buying new vehicles.

Ford reported a second-quarter loss of $1.33 billion, with costs largely tied to the end of a joint electric-vehicle battery venture with SK Group and other electric-vehicle program cancellations. Stripping out certain one-time items, the company reported adjusted earnings of 42 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting adjusted earnings of 36 cents a share.

Sherry House, Ford's finance chief, said buyers are gravitating to larger off-road SUV and truck variants, which accounted for nearly a quarter of the company's U.S. sales in the second quarter.

"Our Ford consumer has been very resilient, despite inflation, despite what we're seeing in interest rates," House said on a call with reporters.

The automaker said Tuesday that the sales drop was primarily due to the discontinuation of higher-volume models such as the Escape SUV and the supplier fire that undermined production of F-Series trucks. Revenue fell 4% in the second quarter, but is up slightly through June compared with a year prior.

The automaker's stance on American car buyers reflects the auto market in recent years. Average transaction prices continue to hover around $50,000. More than one million usual buyers have opted out of the new-car market, opting instead to buy used or to keep their existing vehicles. Still, high car prices have kept earnings steady.

Ford is aiming to roll out cheaper options for customers, House said. The company is racing to prepare the launch of a new all-electric pickup in 2027. The truck, expected to start at $30,000, will be the first of several affordable vehicles built on that platform, House said.

"We think that we have what the customer wants and we also are focused on affordability," House said. "That is why we have our new Universal EV Platform."

More broadly, U.S. car buyers have been increasingly interested in more affordable options. Sales of cheaper subcompact SUVs rose more than 23% last month compared with a year prior, according to industry-research firm Kelley Blue Book, while full-size pickups inched higher just 2.5%.

While high gas prices remain a concern with the Iran war continuing into the summer, House said the conflict for now hadn't dented sales on the U.S. side.

Analysts at Jefferies expected the second quarter to be a low point in sales volume for Ford, because of the fire involving aluminum supplier Novelis. Ford expects to make up for those lost sales. Its recent tie-up with Chinese carmaker Geely to boost production at a factory in Spain is also a positive development, Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois said in a note.

Ford's stock has rallied in recent months following the announcement of a new energy-storage subsidiary, Ford Energy. The new division will repurpose EV battery manufacturing capacity for stationary energy-storage systems designed for artificial-intelligence data centers and power utilities.

Farley also addressed The Wall Street Journal's recent report that Ford secured a contract with the Department of Defense to build prototype tactical trucks. The Pentagon in recent months has asked U.S. automakers to increase their roles in the defense space and help boost weapons production.

"Ford always answers the call to duty," Farley said. "We're very focused on these adjacencies that are very close to our core business, like BESS, " he said, meaning battery-energy storage systems.

"We are discussing, continue to discuss additional defense-related projects with the U.S. government, but we have nothing else to add at this point," he added.