(July 30): Stellantis NV’s profitability remained under pressure in the second quarter as intensifying competition from Chinese rivals and recall costs in North America weighed on earnings.
Adjusted operating income of €293 million (US$335 million or RM1.2 billion) in the period came in below analyst estimates, with Stellantis Thursday citing high raw-material costs and weak pricing in Europe. Rising group sales and a return to net profit in the period failed to excite investors.
The shares fell as much as 8.9% in Milan, their steepest intraday drop since April. They’re down 48% this year, the worst-performing stock in the Europe Stoxx 600 Index in the period.
Chief executive officer Antonio Filosa plans to spend some €60 billion through 2030 on dozens of new models to help turn around Stellantis. The group wants to prioritise the Jeep, Ram, Peugeot and Fiat brands while improving quality. It’s also betting on partnerships with China’s Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology Co and Dongfeng Motor Corp to help fill up some of its underused plants in Europe.
Stellantis “is starting to turn the business into a more cash generative asset but earnings by region still reflect the competitive end markets”, JPMorgan analysts led by Jose Asumendi said in a note.
The CEO is trying to rebuild Stellantis’ important North American business after years of losing market share. Sales and adjusted earnings improved there in the period on robust demand for models like the Ram 1500 pickup truck with a more powerful engine, but profitability was impacted by higher recall costs. The company earlier this month named new leaders for its Jeep and Ram brands as part of the turnaround.
In Europe, where the group is partnering with Leapmotor on sales, shipments increased 5% due to robust demand for smaller cars including the Fiat 500 and the Citroën C3 Aircross. Stellantis’ operating margin improved but remained below zero, with the company citing negative net pricing and raw material inflation.
Chinese automakers including BYD Co and Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd are already dominating electric vehicle (EV) sales in China. Now they’re expanding in Europe, putting pressure on mass-market manufacturers like Stellantis and Volkswagen AG with competitively priced hybrids and EVs.
Filosa is meeting these challenges by trying to make the company leaner — echoing similar moves at Renault SA, Volkswagen and BMW AG. The group targets €6 billion in annual savings by 2028 compared to last year’s level. Earlier this week, Stellantis agreed to sell its car-sharing business Free2move to a German private equity firm, part of its efforts to exit unprofitable businesses and refocus investments on core brands and regions.
The automaker said Thursday it’s expecting net tariff headwinds of as much as €1.2 billion this year. It reaffirmed its financial guidance for the year.
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