Paris (France) (AFP) – Global automaker Stellantis — owner of the Jeep and Fiat brands — said Thursday it had swung back into profit in the first quarter, but failed to convince investors ahead of presenting its new strategy. The 14-brand group, which includes Peugeot and Chrysler, posted a net profit of 377 million euros ($440 million) in January through March, compared to a loss of 387 million euros in the same period last year.
However, the carmaker’s shares slumped more than eight percent at one point on the Paris stock exchange before recovering slightly as the profit missed the analyst consensus forecast of 387 million calculated by Bloomberg. Analysts remained skeptical that the world’s fifth-largest carmaker can rebuild solid margins, particularly in Europe. Sales rose by six percent to 38.1 billion euros, with sales volumes rising in all regions, including North America, where the carmaker has suffered in recent years. The sales revenue figure was slightly below analyst expectations compiled by financial data provider Factset, but the 12-percent increase in sales volumes surpassed forecasts.
“The first three months of 2026 reflect the early results of our actions to return Stellantis to sustainable, profitable growth,” chief executive Antonio Filosa said in a statement. Filosa noted that the new vehicles launched last year had been well received. Stellantis hopes to build on that momentum, with another 10 models hitting showrooms this year, he added. “Our priority is clear: to put our customers back at the centre of everything we do,” he said.
Stellantis, formed in 2021 through a merger of France’s PSA Group and the Italian-American company Fiat-Chrysler, booked a colossal 20-billion-euro charge on its 2025 results as it sought to pivot away from the EV sector.
– Strategy Change –
The company plans to unveil a new strategy on May 21 to turn around its fortunes as Western automakers face rising competition from Chinese carmakers. According to media reports, Stellantis is looking to focus on four of its brands: Peugeot in France, Fiat in Germany, and Jeep and Ram in the United States. The other brands would receive fewer resources. Recent decisions included cutting 650 engineering posts in Germany for the group’s Opel brand.
The carmaker is also opening up its underused European factories to Chinese partners seeking to assemble cars in Europe to avoid tariffs and make EVs eligible for purchase subsidies. Leapmotor has already announced that it will produce two models in a Stellantis factory in Spain. Dongfeng is also reportedly looking to use several Stellantis factories in Europe.
Stellantis improved revenues and sales volumes in North America, including in the United States, where it managed to beat an overall decline in the car market. Its performance in Europe, however, failed to impress, with a five-percent increase in volumes converting to just a one-percent increase in revenues, indicating margins were being squeezed. “Europe still seems to be the most difficult region to turn around,” said analyst Michael Foundoukidis at Oddo. He added that partnerships with Chinese carmakers “cannot, on their own, be considered an adequate answer.”
In Filosa’s view, “we know that our industrial footprint in Europe has a very large capacity, and our first goal is to increase capacity utilization there in our plants.” Filosa argued: “Our brands represent our strongest asset for our customers and for our markets.” He added, “What we need to balance for our future is the way we grow volume, which is our number one objective, exploring the reach and the power of our brands and our product, and the way we work that efficiently.”
While Stellantis’s first-quarter swing into profit failed to meet analyst forecasts, most of its rivals have been seeing their profits falling. German rival Volkswagen announced on Thursday its first-quarter profit had fallen 28 percent. BYD, General Motors, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo have all also reported falling first-quarter profits.
© 2024 AFP
