Daimler shines again
The share of the car group is on the upswing.
(Photo: AP)
Beijing, Munich The automaker’s share Daimler is currently in high demandt. Since mid-May, paper has skyrocketed by more than 30 percent. On Tuesday alone, the increase was now almost nine percent. There is a lot of speculation in the market about the reasons for the rapid rise in the share price – from the hope of upcoming subsidies to new cooperation projects with old partners and the takeover of Chinese investors.
According to Frank Schwope, analyst at the, there is a clear answer for the price rally NordLBbut not: “I can’t think of a rational explanation for this.” The auto expert speculates that investors are hoping for a variety of reasons Daimler could draw. “Maybe one or the other speculates on a scrappage bonus or a stronger cooperation with Renault. “
Not until the end of May Renault President Jean-Dominique Senard had spoken of itthat there could soon be “very good news” about the collaboration with Daimler. The two vehicle manufacturers have been cooperating in the development and construction of individual cars and engines for more than a decade. However, the partnership has stalled somewhat in recent years.
Nevertheless, almost all European car values are currently showing noticeable price increases. The fact that the Daimler share is growing faster than most of its competitors could be due to the fact that the Mercedes manufacturer “suffered disproportionately in the months and years before,” Schwope believes. In fact, Daimler is still valued very low with a market capitalization of currently 39 billion euros. For comparison: the end of 2019 was the DaxGroup worth 53 billion euros, and by the end of 2017 almost 76 billion euros.
The still low rating of the brand with the star arouses desires. After all, according to Intrabrand, Mercedes is one of the ten most valuable brands in the world. “Our stock market price is a bargain, so we will have to be vigilant,” warned Daimler works council chief Michael Brecht at the end of March about possible takeovers. In contrast, Daimler is missing BMW (Quandt family) and Volkswagen (Porsche and Piëch clan) a protective anchor shareholder.
Since 2018 GeelyFounder Li Shufu, Daimler’s largest single shareholder, with 9.7 percent. In a recent interview with Reuters, Li said that Geely was looking into closer collaboration with the Stuttgart-based carmaker, but didn’t go into more detail. That the busy entrepreneur, also the Swedish carmaker Volvo heard, plans to increase further at Daimler, but has it denied.
No final decisions
When asked by the Handelsblatt, a spokesman for Geely said that it was old rumors that had been around for a while. Geely has no plans to change its stake in Daimler, the spokesman said. Li’s statements were aimed at increasing cooperation in the areas of technology, software, connectivity and rights sharing.
With BAIC, Daimler still has a second major Chinese shareholder. The Swabian Beijing joint venture partner wants to catch up with Li and has been considering increasing its stake from five to ten percent for months. In return, Daimler could possibly increase its stake in the joint venture Beijing Benz Automotive (BBAC) from the current 49 percent to well over half. There are no final decisions on the business games.
The German Protection Association for Securities Ownership (DSW) had repeatedly expressed concerns that if BAIC or Geely were to increase their stake, almost 20 percent of Daimler’s shares would be in Chinese hands and a Far Eastern blocking minority could thus be within reach.
In industrial circles, however, it is rather unlikely that BAIC or Geely want to increase their share to over ten percent. After an entry of this magnitude, the financial supervisory authority Bafin would come into play, which must intensively examine all holdings of more than ten percent in domestic banks. And with the Daimler Mercedes Benz Bank an institution holding a full banking license.
More: Profit slump of almost 80 percent – the Daimler figures in the analysis