Photo courtesy of Ford. 

Ford Motor Company (F) shares are trading higher after the company issued strong second-quarter guidance ahead of its fireside chat Thursday at the Deutsche Bank Auto Conference.

Here are some key takeaways:

• Ford sees adjusted EBIT as being significantly better year-over-year.  
• Ford highlighted strong customer reservations for four new vehicles: a full-size Bronco SUV, a battery-electric F-150 Lightning pickup, a Maverick compact truck, and an all-electric E-Transit commercial van.
• Ford said improvement in autos is being driven by lower-than-anticipated costs and favorable market factors. Higher vehicle auction values are benefiting Ford Credit, the company said. 
• Ford sees second-quarter net income as being substantially lower year-over-year as a result of a $3.5-billion investment in Argo AI. 
• Ford reported 36,000 customer reservations for the all-new Maverick compact pickup and 20,000 for the all-electric E-Transit commercial van. 

F Price Action: Ford shares were up 2.8% at $15.44 at last check premarket Thursday. 

The stock has a 52-week high of $16.45 and a 52-week low of $5.74.