Mercedes-Benz says the use of standardized battery platforms and scalable vehicle architectures – with advances in battery technology – will contribute to variable cost reductions of vehicles. This of course is the business plan of all major automakers.
Mercedes-Benz Group, previously Daimler AG, today posted some positive financial results for the year 2021 based on preliminary unaudited figures. At the current point – due to various effects of the de-consolidation of the Daimler commercial vehicle business – group financials are not yet available. (AutoInformed: Daimler Truck Receives Investment Grade Ratings; Shareholders Vote to Spin-off of Daimler Truck, Rename Daimler AG to Mercedes-Benz Group)
However, the Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans segment has exceeded the guidance range of 10-12% and now expects an adjusted Return on Sales of 12.7% in the full year. Despite the ongoing semiconductor shortages, during Q4 Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans showed an adjusted Return on Sales of 15.0%, driven by high net pricing, good product mix and favorable used car performance. The strong profitability of the car business also translated into a solid industrial free cash flow exceeding the company guidance.
Financial Year 2021 Unaudited Results
- Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans expects an adjusted EBIT in the magnitude of 14.0bn Euros and an adjusted Return on Sales of approximately 12.7% The forecast was 10-12%.
- Mercedes-Benz Mobility reached an adjusted EBIT of ~3.4B Euros and an adjusted Return on Equity (RoE) of approximately 22.0%. (forecast 20-22%)
- Industrial Free Cash Flow in the new group structure (segment Daimler Trucks & Buses included until December 09th, 2021) is now expected at prior year level, in the vicinity of 8.5B Euros (forecast – slightly below previous year)
The Annual Results Conference for the financial year 2021 will be on February 24th, 2022. The Annual Report 2021 will be released on March 11th, 2022.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
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