(BFM Stock Exchange) – The automaker has delivered results in very sharp decrease in its 2024 financial year, weighed down by its important stocks in the United States. For 2025, the manufacturer from the merger between PSA and Fiat Chrysler tables on a common operating margin “with a figure in the middle of the fork”. The action suffers on the Paris Stock Exchange.

Stellantis puts an end to a 2024 exercise which was a real “Annus Horribilis” for the car manufacturer in the fourteen brands. Due to its high stocks in the United States and significant loss of market share, the volumes and profitability of the company collapsed.

Stellantis had even been forced to spend a heavy warning on results and its managing director, Carlos Tavares, formerly renowned for his unfailing execution, resigned at the end of November. Consequently, the Stellantis action plunged more than 40% in 2024.

The annual results published by the company this Wednesday, February 26, bear the stigma of this year oh so difficult.

Speaking figure: over the whole of 2024, the company’s net profit collapsed from 70% to 5.52 billion euros, against 18.6 billion euros in 2023. On the second half of 2024, Stellantis even accuses a net loss of 127 million euros, to be compared with a profit of 7.7 billion in the second part of 2023.

The net profit was notably engaged, by a new provision of 768 million euros linked to the reminders campaign on the Takata airbags.

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Billions of euros in burnt cash

Stellantis was, above all, was heavily penalized by the fall of its volumes which fell from 753,000 units in 2024, a decrease of 12% over a year. In North America, the largest and profitable market in the group, volumes plunged 25%.

The company’s revenues established itself at 156.9 billion euros down 17% compared to 2023, with folds of 27% in North America and 11% in Europe. On their own, the volumes and the “mix” (the distribution of sales according to the more or less profitable models) entrenched 28.7 billion euros in income (or 15 percentage points) compared to 2023.

The current operating profit plunged 64% over one year to 8.65 billion euros. The current operating margin thus collapsed, registering at 5.5% against 12.8% in 2023.

On the second half alone, the current operating margin plunged, falling almost at zero (0.3%). Analysts were waiting for a 1.2%rate, according to a consensus quoted by Royal Bank of Canada.

In North America, it switched to bright red, establishing itself at -6.8%, due to a fall in volumes of 30% and the multiplication of promotions. This resulted in turnover down 38%.

The volume dive is partly explained by the drop in production operated by the company in the second half of them in order to support the reduction of stocks at its dealerships.

As such, Stellantis said it brought back the level of its stocks to 304,000 units at the end of December, down 18%, with a decline of 20% from its American dealers. The group exceeded its objective, which was 330,000 units.

The industrial cash flow flow was negative over the entire 2024, Stellantis burning 6.045 billion euros in cash, against a positive flow of 12.9 billion euros in 2023.

Disappointing perspectives for 2025

The UBS bank expected the company to generate, over the entire 2024, a current operating profit of 9.2 billion euros and a running operating margin of 6%. The Swiss establishment also provided for a cash disbursement of 8.8 billion euros. Royal Bank of Canada, for his part, was also tabling on a current operating margin of 6%

For the Canadian Bank, Stellantis published “weak” results in the second half.

“The more pronounced weakness of the second half of 2024 had been widely reported, the management clearly indicating that it wishes to start 2025 on healthier bases, and should therefore not be overly approved,” warns, for its part, Oddo BHF.

On the Paris Stock Exchange, the Stellantis action drops after this publication losing 5% around 10:20 am and accusing the highest drop in CAC 40.

This withdrawal of action seems above all to be due to the prospects communicated by the company.

For 2025, Stellantis announced, in fact, count on growing income, a common operating margin “to a figure in the middle of the range”, which can be roughly translated by a rate of 4% to 6% “, and on a positive industrial cash flow.

Royal Bank of Canada notes that the margin target delivered by the group for 2025 is lower than the expectations of the consensus (which was tapped on a rate of 6%). “It seems light and could exert downward pressure on action,” said the establishment.

Royal Bank of Canada believes that these objectives “give way to a reset of expectations, which is often the case when a new management team is set up”.

Stellantis specifies, in passing that his second half will be much better than the first. The automotive group expects its revenues and margin to be significantly higher in the second part of 2025 than on the first. In addition, Stellantis intends to generate a positive cash flow in the second semester, suggesting that he could still burn cash in the first.

“The fact that Stellantis declares that the generation of a positive free cash flow will occur in the second half of 2025 suggests, at best, that the cash flow will be balanced, or that the consumption of liquidity will continue in the first half of the year 2025. This while the market was expecting a resumption of production, thus canceling a part of the flow of negative treasury of 6 billion euros Second semester 2024, “said Bernstein.

The financial intermediary notes in passing that the company’s forecasts for 2025 do not include changes in customs duties and trade. What constitutes a “pious vow”, Cingle Bernstein, insofar as the Trump administration has a flopping of customs from customs in mind.

The succession of tavares finalized by the end of June

For Oddo BHF, Stellantis’ publication shows that the group still has “a lot to do in the coming months”.

The chairman of the company’s board of directors, John Elkann, admitted in a statement that these results were “below our potential”. “2024 is a year of which we are not proud,” he then said at a conference with analysts and journalists.

“We remain determined to gain market share and improve our financial performance throughout 2025,” he added.

Regarding the succession of Carlos Tavares at the head of the company, the group announced that the appointment process should be finalized “in the first half of 2025”. “In the meantime, the company remains focused on the execution of its strategy,” added the company.

Stellantis has also announced that he would propose a dividend of 68 cents per share under financial year 2024, against 1.55 euros for the year 2023. UBS was tabbed on a coupon at 45 cents per share.

The company also warned that from 2026 it would publish complete results every quarter and no longer all semesters so as to “improve transparency”, meet investors’ requirements on this point and allow a better comparison with its rivals like General Motors and Ford.

Currently, Stellantis only publishes turnover in the first quarter and third quarter. The company had chosen to align itself with this practice which was that of Peugeot SA, unlike Fiat Chrysler which published complete accounts every quarter.