Ford Motor Co (NYSE: F) shares are trading lower Tuesday afternoon after the automaker reported a sluggish July on the sales front. The company's U.S. vehicle sales came in at 169,951 units for the month, a 10.2% drop compared to the same period last year.

Wall Street didn't take the news well. The weakness wasn't isolated to one segment; it was broad-based across several key vehicle categories. That's raising concerns about softening consumer demand, swelling industry inventory levels, and the possibility of price cuts that could squeeze profit margins in the second half of the year.

The electric vehicle picture is particularly grim. Ford's fully electric vehicle sales cratered 74.9% year-over-year to just 2,065 units, with sharp declines in models like the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning. Overall electrified sales fell 40.3%, and hybrid demand dropped 25.1%. It's a tough pill to swallow for a company that's pouring billions into its EV transition.

It wasn't just EVs, though. SUV sales slipped 21.3%, and the luxury Lincoln brand took a 35.9% nosedive. Automakers need steady volume to cover the heavy capital expenditures required for EV development. When higher-margin and strategic growth segments contract sharply, it fuels fears that top-line revenue and overall profitability will stay under pressure in upcoming quarterly earnings.

Investors are voting with their feet. Ford shares were down 1.35% at $14.24 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to market data.