DETROIT — Shares of Ford Motor hit a new 52-week high for a third consecutive day Thursday, putting the stock on pace for its best week since at least June.

The stock is up about 20% this week, including an increase of as much as 11.9% during intraday trading Thursday morning. Shares reached as high as $12.15 on Thursday — the stock's highest price since June 2018. They were trading up about 8% as of early Thursday afternoon.

The surge follows positive comments from Deutsche Bank and Barclays on Ford's product plans and reporting of fourth-quarter earnings on Feb. 4, including optimism about its guidance for 2021. The automaker earlier this month also received praise for its all-electric Mustang Mach-E crossover after Ford allowed several analysts to test-drive the vehicle.

Deutsche added a catalyst call short-term buy idea on shares of Ford on Wednesday and said it was bullish on the company's upcoming earnings report and future product plans, including the Bronco SUV. The firm kept its long-term hold rating on the stock.

"We see potential catalysts occurring in the coming months, including a solid 2021 outlook on its 4Q earnings call (2/4), the launch of a number of key models under its new executive leadership team, and Capital Markets Day in the spring where Ford could reboot its redesign program and present a new EV strategy," Deutsche's Emmanuel Rosner wrote in an investor note.

Barclays followed up Thursday by reconfirming that it remains above consensus for Ford on the basis of Ford's ongoing $11 billion restructuring and product cadence. The automaker last week announced it would end production in Brazil at an expected cost of $4.1 billion in pretax charges as part of the restructuring.

However, Barclays said it remains more bullish on Ford's crosstown rival, General Motors, due to its focus on electric vehicles. GM's plan includes launching 30 new EVs by 2025 under a $27 billion investment in electric and autonomous vehicles. Ford has said it's investing more than $11.5 billion in electrified vehicles, including all-electric and plug-in hybrid models, through 2022.